Development of small cell lung cancer therapy targeting neural stem cell undifferentiation maintenance factors

2023 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 19K08604
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (C)
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Section: 一般
• Review Section: Basic Section 53030:Respiratory medicine-related
• Research Institution: Kumamoto University
• Principal Investigator: KITA KANAKO 熊本大学, 大学院生命科学研究部(医), 助教 (30457600)
• Project Period (FY): 2019-04-01 – 2022-03-31
• Keywords: 抗癌剤 / 高悪性度癌 / 中分子IT創薬 / モダリティー

Outline of Final Research Achievements

Not only previous studies showed that SMF1 was highly expressed and phosphorylated in neural stem cells, but also,immunohistological staining of human clinical pathology specimens of small cell carcinomashowed that highly expression and phosphorylation of SMF1. In particular, tissue staining was performed on an increased number of human clinical pathology specimens, and SMF1 expression was observed in almost all clinical specimens. In this project, we revealed that SMF1 is involved in the malignancy of cancer, and that suppressing the expression of SMF1 in small cell lung cancer caused the tumor to shrink. This discovery allowed us to obtain patents in the United States, Japan, France, England, Germany, and Switzerland.

Free Research Field

分子生物学

Academic Significance and Societal Importance of the Research Achievements

本課題にて、SMF1が癌の悪性度に関わっていることを明らかにし、肺小細胞癌におけるSMF1の発現を抑制することで、腫瘍が縮小することを明らかにした。この発見で、アメリカ、日本、フランス、イギリス、ドイツ、スイスで特許を取得出来た。SMF1を抑制することの出来る化合物を開発することで、これを腫瘍に投与すると、腫瘍を抑制することが出来るので、これまでになかった抗癌剤を世に出すことが出来るので、社会的意義も大きい。