(Press-News.org) 22 JANUARY 2026
SINGAPORE – Scientists from A*STAR Institute of Molecular and Cell Biology (A*STAR IMCB) have identified why certain lung cancer cells become highly resistant to treatment after developing mutations in a key gene called EGFR (epidermal growth factor receptor). In a study published in Science Advances, the researchers revealed a previously unknown survival mechanism and demonstrated that disrupting it can shrink tumours in laboratory models.
Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer deaths globally. Many cases are driven by mutations in the EGFR gene, which causes cells to grow and divide uncontrollably. In Southeast Asia, these mutations are found in up to 40–60% of a common type of lung cancer called adenocarcinoma. While targeted drugs initially work well against these cancers, nearly all patients eventually stop responding.
Scientists have long puzzled over why the faulty proteins produced by mutant EGFR are so stable – while normal proteins are recycled via degradation, these mutant versions persist far longer than they should.
Genome-Wide Screen Reveals How Cancer Cells Protect Themselves
The researchers screened more than 21,000 genes to identify what protects these mutant proteins from being broken down. They discovered that cancer cells flood their surroundings with ATP (adenosine triphosphate), a molecule normally used for energy. This excess ATP switches on a receptor called P2Y2, which then recruits a partner protein called integrin β1 to form a protective barrier around the mutant EGFR.
This barrier stops the faulty protein from reaching the cell's "recycling centre," where it would normally be broken down. Instead, the protected protein remains active and continues driving cancer growth. The team confirmed these findings in human cancers by examining tissue samples from 29 lung cancer patients, where both P2Y2 and integrin β1 were found at elevated levels in tumours compared to adjacent healthy tissue.
"We found that cancer cells deploy molecular 'bodyguards' to shield the mutant protein from being broken down," said Dr Gandhi Boopathy, Senior Scientist at A*STAR IMCB and co-corresponding author of the study. "The good news is that P2Y2 sits on the cell surface, so it's much easier for drugs to reach compared to targets hidden deep inside the cell."
Natural Compound Shows Promise Against Drug-Resistant Tumours
The team showed that removing this protective system could stop cancer in its tracks. When they knocked out the P2Y2 receptor in drug-resistant cancer cells, it led to an almost complete loss of the mutant EGFR protein.
The researchers also tested kaempferol, a natural compound found in vegetables like kale and broccoli. In laboratory models with drug-resistant human lung tumours, daily treatment with kaempferol significantly shrank tumours over 24 days. Crucially, the treatment targeted only the cancer cells carrying EGFR mutations while having no detectable effect on tumours with normal EGFR.
"By targeting the P2Y2 system, we're not just attacking the mutation itself, but the scaffolding that keeps it stable," said Professor Wanjin Hong, Senior Principal Investigator at A*STAR IMCB and co-corresponding author. "This approach could potentially work alongside current drugs to overcome or even prevent resistance, opening up a new way to tackle drug resistance when existing treatments stop working."
The study was led by Prof Wanjin Hong, a President's Science Award recipient whose lab has pioneered research into how cancer cells evade destruction. The co-first author Yafei Du is a PhD student supported by the Singapore International Graduate Award (SINGA). The research was a collaborative effort involving researchers from A*STAR, the National University of Singapore, and the National Cancer Centre Singapore, as well as partners at China Medical University in Taiwan and the Centre de Recherche en Cancérologie de Marseille in France.
-- END --
For media queries and clarifications, please contact:
Owen Sia
Corporate Communications
Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR)
Tel: +65 6517 7866
Email: owen_sia@a-star.edu.sg
END
How can bacteria squeeze through spaces narrower than a human hair is thick? A research team in Japan led by Dr. Daisuke Nakane and Dr. Tetsuo Kan at the University of Electro-Communications, Dr. Hirofumi Wada at Ritsumeikan University, and Dr. Yoshitomo Kikuchi at National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology have revealed the answer: they drill their way through.
The study, published in Nature Communications, shows that certain symbiotic bacteria wrap their rotating flagella—the helical tails used for swimming—around their cell bodies to form a “screw thread.” This configuration lets them propel forward through one-micrometer-wide passages, such ...
LOGAN, Utah, USA — A recent critique from a team led by Utah State University ecologist Dan MacNulty and published in Forest Ecology and Management has prompted a formal correction to a high-profile study on aspen recovery while raising broader questions about how scientific conclusions are drawn and defended in complex ecological systems.
The original study, published last year by Luke Painter and colleagues, concluded that restoration of large carnivores — including the reintroduction of wolves in the mid-1990s — triggered a strong, ecologically significant trophic cascade that fostered widespread recovery of aspen trees in northern Yellowstone. Central to their evidence ...
Gaps in the nation’s stroke transfer system are drastically reducing survivors’ chances of receiving critical treatment and increasing the likelihood that they will leave the hospital with a disability, a new study suggests.
Around one-third of ischemic stroke survivors are eligible for endovascular thrombectomy, an effective intervention that changed the landscape of stroke treatment more than a decade ago.
More than 40% of people who receive endovascular therapy are initially seen at hospitals that don’t offer the treatment. These patients require transfer to more advanced facilities capable of delivering thrombectomy.
New findings published in The Lancet ...
Gaps in the U.S. stroke transfer system are drastically reducing survivors’ chances of receiving critical treatment and increasing the likelihood that they will leave the hospital with a disability, according to a new study published in The Lancet Neurology.
Around one-third of ischemic stroke patients are eligible for endovascular thrombectomy, an effective intervention that changed the landscape of stroke treatment more than a decade ago.
More than 40% of people who receive endovascular therapy initially arrive at hospitals that don’t offer the treatment. These patients require transfer to more advanced facilities capable of delivering ...
The long term use of proton pump inhibitors (PPIs), a class of drugs widely used to treat acid reflux and ulcers, may not be linked to any increased risk of developing gastric (stomach) cancer, finds a study of Nordic health data published by The BMJ today.
This finding should offer relief for patients needing long term proton pump inhibitor therapy and is valuable for clinical decision making in healthcare settings, say the researchers.
A fear that proton pump inhibitors could lead to stomach cancer has been ongoing since the 1980s. Recent research has linked their use to around a twofold increased risk, but ...
Offering non-monetary incentives such as free access to outpatient consultations to frequent blood donors is linked to an increase in donations without compromising blood safety, finds a study from China published by The BMJ today.
The researchers say their findings could encourage policymakers in other countries to design their own incentive models to address blood shortages.
Many countries, particularly developing ones, struggle to sustain an adequate blood supply due to challenges of retaining blood donors under the “gift model” - a ...
Natural ovulation before frozen embryo transfer is as effective as hormone treatment for achieving a healthy baby by vitro fertilisation (IVF), finds a clinical trial from China published by The BMJ today.
Natural ovulation is also linked to a lower risk of several complications for the mother, such as pre-eclampsia (abnormally high blood pressure), the results show.
Globally, the use of frozen embryo transfer after IVF has increased substantially and accounts for more than 60% of all embryo transfers.
Doctors prepare the womb lining (endometrium) for frozen ...
A major UK clinical trial has shown that adding the corticosteroid dexamethasone to standard antiviral treatment for encephalitis (brain inflammation), caused by herpes simplex virus (HSV) does not improve long-term outcomes overall, although early use may lead to better recovery, and the treatment is safe for patients in whom encephalitis is suspected.
The DexEnceph study, led by researchers at The Pandemic Institute, the University of Liverpool, and Walton Centre NHS Foundation Trust in partnership with Encephalitis International and research teams around the country, provides the most definitive evidence so far on whether corticosteroids should be used ...
Severe vitamin D deficiency is associated with a higher rate of hospitalisation for respiratory tract infections such as bronchitis and pneumonia, according to a new study led by the University of Surrey. Scientists found that those with a severe deficiency (below 15 nnmol/L) were 33 per cent more likely to be admitted to hospital for treatment than those with sufficient levels of vitamin D (at least 75 nmol/L).
In the largest study of its kind, analysing NHS data from the UK Biobank, researchers from Surrey, in collaboration with the University of Reading ...
There has been a lasting and disproportionate impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on diagnosis rates for conditions including depression, asthma and osteoporosis.
Depression is the most severely impacted, with almost a third fewer diagnoses than expected compared with pre-pandemic trends.
The King’s College London study is the first to evaluate whether diagnosis rates have recovered after emerging from the pandemic. Published today in the British Medical Journal (BMJ), it uses anonymised data from over 29 million people in England.
The pandemic had an unprecedented impact on healthcare systems around the world, leading to abrupt decreases ...
