Cancer cells grow and divide in an uncontrolled manner. A new study from Uppsala University now shows how alterations in a cell’s degradation hubs, called lysosomes, can cause abnormal cell growth. The results are published today in the scientific journal Nature Communications.
Normal cells have several control mechanisms that prevent them from growing uncontrollably. During the last few years, it has become increasingly clear that these regulatory processes are taking place on the surface of lysosomes, which are small membrane-encapsulated vesicles that function as degradation centers of all cells.