Developing a therapy for a challenging but promising target in cancer

There are certain molecules in cancer that we know would make great targets, but that are difficult to reach. Mesotrpysin is one of these. Mesotrypsin is a molecule whose abnormal activities assist cancer progression and metastasis. Researchers have long tried to find a way to target this molecule, but without much success. There is currently not a single drug on the market that targets mesotrpysin.

Professor Niv Papo and his team are taking up the challenge and are trying to create a new drug that can bind to mesotrpysin and stop it from working. They want to develop a drug that can inhibit mesotrypsin, while ignoring any similar molecules. This approach could drastically reduce the potential for side effects. Professor Papo hopes that the newly generated drug will be further developed in the future as a viable anti-cancer therapy.