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The Myc oncogene is activated in most human cancers. It achieves its powerful effects because it encodes a transcription factor: Aberrant activation of Myc leads to the coordinated turning on of thousands of other genes, most of which have oncogenic effects. Such genes drive cells to divide, prohibit cell death, and encourage tumor angiogenesis.
A multi-institutional team used RNA interference to identify genes that, when inactivated in the presence of activated Myc, inhibit the development of cancer. The investigators found that inactivating the gene for an enzyme (called SAE1/2) produces defects in the mitotic spindles of cancerous cells triggered to divide by Myc activation. As a result, the malignant cells die. Other poisons that target …