How Cancer Cells Hijack Protein Production to Grow Quickly

Abstract

The cells in your body contain genes made of DNA. Genes store the genetic information passed on to you by your parents. This information serves as the recipe to make proteins, and proteins build, maintain, and heal every tissue in your body. The cellular machinery that makes proteins reads this recipe with the help of small molecules called transfer RNAs (tRNAs), which supply the necessary building blocks in the correct order to construct specific proteins. To function properly, tRNAs must fold into the correct three-dimensional shape—a process that requires tRNA to be decorated with chemical modifications. Scientists have discovered that cancer hijacks and boosts this decorating process for its own benefit, favoring the production of proteins involved in cell division. This is an exciting finding because it could allow for the development of better ways to diagnose and treat cancers in the future.

Read the Original Source Article: https://linkinghub.elsevier.com/retrieve/pii/S1097276521005426