MUNENDRA Aalmost 7 years ago

Study finds how NF-2 gene mutations make cells hyper-responsive to growth factor signaling

A team of Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) Cancer Center researchers has determined one way that mutations in a gene involved in a rare, hereditary cancer syndrome lead to out-of-control cellular proliferation. In their report published online in Genes & Development, the team describes finding how mutations in the NF2 (neurofibromatosis type 2) gene, which codes for the merlin protein, make cells hyper-responsive to growth factor signaling. In addition to neurofibromatosis type 2, a genetic disorder that induces the formation of numerous benign tumors throughout the nervous system, NF2 mutations have also been associated with the dangerous malignant cancer mesothelioma.