UCY team’s findings can aid scientists researching cancer growth  

Important findings, expected to aid scientists in dealing with genetic disorders and cancer growth have been announced by the Laboratory of Developmental Biology and Nanobiotechnology at the University of Cyprus.

A research team, composed of PhD candidate Nicoletta Petridou and Assistant Professor Dr Paris A Skourides, has identified novel roles of the Focal Adhesion Kinase (FAK) in spindle orientation and cell division.

Specifically, the team showed that FAK was a crucial regulator of cell division and is required for the proper orientation of cell division in cultured cells and in vertebrate tissues and organs.

According to a press release, orientation of cell division is a very important process both for proper development of embryonic tissues and organs as well as for the maintenance of tissues and organs in adults.

Loss of the ability to orient cell division results in severe developmental defects in the embryo and is responsible for a number of diseases in adults including neurological disorders like Huntington’s as well as others like polycystic kidney disease.

Importantly, loss of division orientation is involved in tumour progression and metastasis which in combination with FAK´s established role in tumorigenesis emphasises the significance of these findings.

The researchers’ findings were published in the journal Nature Communications.

 

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