Understanding and Stopping Cancer Drug Resistance
Dissecting and Targeting MAST1 Signaling in chemoresistant Cancers
This research aims to find new ways to make cancer treatments work better for patients whose cancers have become resistant to common chemotherapy drugs like cisplatin.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Emory University NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Atlanta, United States) |
| Project ID | NIH-11140521 on NIH RePORTER |
What this research studies
Many cancer treatments, like cisplatin, stop working over time because cancer cells become resistant. Our team has found a key factor called MAST1 that helps cancer cells resist these drugs. We are working to understand how MAST1 becomes active and how it is controlled by other factors like AURKB and p53. We are also exploring how MAST1 might be linked to changes in cancer cell metabolism. The goal is to develop new strategies to block MAST1, making chemotherapy effective again for patients.
Who could benefit from this research
Good fit: This research is most relevant to cancer patients whose tumors have developed resistance to platinum-based chemotherapy drugs like cisplatin.
Not a fit: Patients whose cancers are not resistant to current chemotherapy or who are not receiving platinum-based drugs may not directly benefit from this specific approach.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this work could lead to new treatments that overcome drug resistance, allowing chemotherapy to be more effective for cancer patients.
How similar studies have performed: While MAST1 has been identified as a resistance driver, this research explores novel mechanisms of its activation and its link to metabolism, representing a new direction for targeting drug resistance.
Where this research is happening
Atlanta, United States
- Emory University — Atlanta, United States (Active)
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Kang, Sumin — Emory University
- Study coordinator: Kang, Sumin
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page below.