Two new studies now have uncovered fungal DNA in tumors throughout the body and endeavor to characterize the cancer mycobiome. Both studies were published in the Sept. 29, 2022, online issue of Cell. Although the association between cancer and individual microbes has long been explored, recent attention has focused on the whole human microbiome.
Tumor mutational burden (TMB), a biomarker used to assess whether a patient will respond to immunotherapy, needs to be recalculated in order to be useful for patients of Asian or African descent. Scientists at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute found a significant bias in the estimated TMB values affecting these populations and adjusted them for those patients.
Janssen Pharmaceutica NV has patented cyclin-dependent kinase 7 (CDK7) inhibitors reported to be useful for the treatment of cancer, autoimmune disease, rheumatoid arthritis and inflammatory disorders.
Xuanzhu Pharma Co. Ltd. has discovered new tricyclic compounds acting as mitogen-activated protein kinase kinase kinase kinase 1 (MAP4K1) inhibitors reported to be useful for the treatment of cancer.
Medshine Discovery Inc. has identified thiophene compounds acting as lysine-specific histone demethylase 1A (LSD1) inhibitors reported to be useful for the treatment of cancer.