Scientists have known that the protein kinase GSK3 has been linked to leukemia, but they thought its job was to inhibit cell growth. It turns out that this kinase does something else as well, it helps to regulate cell growth, something that is uncontrollable in cancer patients. The kinases in cancer patients are not able to effectively regulate cell growth, and cells grow uncontrollably, forming tumors. This discovery of the kinases is relevant to our study about protien kinases and mitosis. Protein kinases bind to other proteins to carry out cellular processes, this kinase carrying out cell division. We also learned about cell division, which is what the kinase regulates. If scientists were able to create a drug that interacted specifically with the kinase and stopped uncontrolled cell division, there could be a possible cure for leukemia, which claims the lives of many every year.
link: http://health.usnews.com/articles/health/healthday/2008/09/17/signaling-protein-could-be-target-for-leukemia.html
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