A protein called NatD helps glioblastoma grow in lab tests
Original title: NatD promotes glioblastoma progression through epigenetic activation of FGFR4 signalling.
How far along is this research?
- Lab cells
- Animals
- Review
- Tested in people
This was done in animals, not people. Most findings at this stage never become treatments.
This was only done in lab dishes and in mice.
The short version
Scientists found a protein that brain tumor cells seem to need, and blocking it slowed tumors in cells and in mice.
What was studied. Researchers studied a protein called NatD in glioblastoma: A glioma that is given grade 4, the highest grade. It grows fast. Treatment usually starts soon after it is found. It often means surgery, then radiation and chemotherapy. See the glossary cells grown in the lab, including cells taken from patients. They also tested it in mice with brain tumors, and looked at gene data from past patient samples.
What they found. NatD levels were higher in glioblastoma: A glioma that is given grade 4, the highest grade. It grows fast. Treatment usually starts soon after it is found. It often means surgery, then radiation and chemotherapy. See the glossary than normal. When the team turned NatD down, the cancer cells grew, moved, and spread less. NatD worked by keeping another protein, FGFR4, switched on. In mice, turning NatD down slowed tumor growth in the brain and helped the mice live longer.
What this means, and what it doesn't
What it could mean: This points to a possible new target for future glioblastoma: A glioma that is given grade 4, the highest grade. It grows fast. Treatment usually starts soon after it is found. It often means surgery, then radiation and chemotherapy. See the glossary drugs. It helps explain part of how these tumors keep growing. For now it is a lead for researchers to follow.
What it doesn't mean: This does not mean there is a new treatment. The work was done in lab dishes and in mice, not in people. No drug that blocks NatD was tested in patients here. It is not a cure, and it is far from everyday care. Most findings at this stage never become treatments.
Source: PubMed, September 2, 2026 · Read the original
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