Two biophysicists from Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine have used supercomputers to show how cell membranes control the shape, and consequently the function, of a major cancer-causing protein.
The protein, a small enzyme called K-Ras, is attached to cell membranes where it senses signals that originate outside the cell. During cancer, dysfunctional K-Ras then activates proteins inside the cell that can cause tumor growth and metastasis. K-Ras functions as a troublesome molecular switch, which is perpetually “on” in many cancers, particularly pancreatic cancer.
