Cancer hope in genes breakthrough

An international team of scientists including experts from Cancer Research UK and Cambridge University have studied the structure of cells in yeast and said it was the first time nearly all the genes required for reproduction of a cell and for a proper cell shape to be formed had been identified.

The work, reported in Royal Society journal Open Biology, was carried out by studying a set of mutant strains in each of which a single gene had been deleted.

Each of these strains was examined to see if cell reproduction or cell shape was changed. In this way all the genes involved in these processes were identified.

Dr Julie Sharp, Cancer Research UK’s senior science information manager, said: “For the first time our researchers have created a complete picture of the genes that control cell growth and behaviour in yeast cells, which could reveal more about how cancer starts and develops and highlight new ways to tackle the disease.”