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Cancer

A shocking protein complex

Nature volume 538, pages 322–323 (2016)Cite this article

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Heat-shock proteins have been found to form part of a large protein complex, called the epichaperome, that improves the survival of some cancer cells. This complex might offer a new target for cancer treatment. See Letter p.397

Tumour cells are subject to various forms of stress, such as oxygen or nutrient shortages, when tumour blood-vessel formation cannot keep pace with tumour growth — and the cells therefore need to have effective stress-survival strategies. Heat-shock proteins (HSPs) are often active in cells exposed to stressful conditions. On page 397, Rodina et al.1 have investigated the role of HSPs in human cancer, and find that the proteins exist in a large complex in some cancer cells.

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Figure 1: The epichaperome in cancer cells.

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References

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Kai Bartkowiak and Klaus Pantel are in the Department of Tumor Biology, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, 20246 Hamburg, Germany.,

    Kai Bartkowiak & Klaus Pantel

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  1. Kai Bartkowiak
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  2. Klaus Pantel
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Correspondence to Klaus Pantel.

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Bartkowiak, K., Pantel, K. A shocking protein complex. Nature 538, 322–323 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1038/nature19476

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