Jointly funded by CCLG and CCLG Special Named Fund Bethany's Wish
Lead investigator: Dr Karim Malik, University of Bristol
Award: £84,940.00
Funded November 2016
Many cancers occur because they contain excessive growth-promoting proteins, or 'oncoproteins'. Thus, it may be possible to effectively treat cancers with drugs that eliminate oncoproteins.
Wilms’ tumour is a childhood kidney cancer that can be fatal. This study proposes that growth of Wilms’ tumours may depend on the MYCN oncoprotein, and that pharmacologically eliminating MYCN may represent a way to target the deadliest form of Wilms’ tumour.
The primary aims of this project are therefore to use existing cell-line models, together with a new human MYCN-driven Wilms tumour model which the team will create, to understand the biological influence of MYCN in kidney and Wilms’ tumour cells, and evaluate drugs that target MYCN dependence in Wilms’ tumour leading to growth inhibition and affecting cell survival.