Wnt Signaling Pathway Inhibitors Block Growth of Human Colon Cancer Cells

Furthermore, these Wnt inhibitors were specifically cytotoxic to human colon tumor-biopsy cultures as well as colon cancer-cell lines that exhibited deregulated Wnt signaling.

"Our study demonstrates that the three newly identified compounds are capable of blocking cell proliferation in cancerous human tumor biopsy cells,” said senior author Dr. Ramanuj DasGupta, assistant professor of pharmacology at New York University. "These molecules hold a lot of promise towards future Wnt-based drug development for cancer treatments. They may allow the compounds to be used for specific therapeutic purposes in humans to induce the death of Wnt-dependent or Wnt-addicted cancer cells and tumor tissues without affecting the growth and proliferation of normal healthy cells.”

"While more exploratory research of these promising compounds is needed, these small molecules identified in the RNAi screens can serve as prototypes for the development of future antitumor drugs targeting the Wnt signaling pathway in different Wnt-associated cancers,” says Dr. DasGupta. "Similar RNAi-based integrated screening technology should be widely applicable to a variety of other signaling pathways implicated in human disease.”

Related Links:
New York University