Structural Oncology - Fighting Cancer with Cryo-EM

Date:  June 24, 2021

Time: 9:00am PDT

Currently, there are insufficient therapies to fully eradicate human cancer or predict who it will strike. Rational-drug design based on structural insights is an under-utilized yet powerful tool. An exciting new direction for the cryo-Electron Microscopy (EM) field involves the structure determination of medically-relevant macromolecules for therapeutic purposes. Developing fresh tools to evaluate native protein assemblies can advance this bold initiative.

In this webinar Dr. Deborah Kelly from Pennsylvania state university will present structural insights for a prime culprit implicated in causing aggressive cancers – the protein factor p53. Importantly, p53 is the most altered gene in human cancer and it is mutated in about half of all malignancies. The National Cancer Institute has determined that individuals having defects in p53 will likely face life-threatening consequences related to cancer induction and metastasis. Thanks to advances in materials research, sample preparation, and direct electron detectors, her group has determined the first cryo-EM structures for p53 isolated from human cancer cells. Pairing our structural findings with biochemical and cellular studies, provides additional fuel to understand differences in p53 function. Equally important, improving our knowledge of tumor suppressors gone awry may lead to new interventions based on structural oncology approaches.

Learning Objectives:

• Discuss rational-drug design based on structural insights with cryo-Electron Microscopy

• Discuss first cryo-EM structures for the protein factor p53 isolated from human cancer cells

• Discuss combined structural findings with biochemical and cellular studies in p53 functional insights

Webinars will be available for unlimited on-demand viewing after live event.