Single protein mimics retinoic acid therapy to help leukaemia cells mature
“This study reveals that the expression of the Src-family kinase (SFK), FGR, alone can induce cell differentiation similar to RA.”
A new research paper was published in Oncotarget, Volume 16, on March 21, 2025, titled “FGR Src family kinase causes signalling and phenotypic shift mimicking retinoic acid-induced differentiation of leukaemic cells.”
A research team led by first author Noor Kazim and corresponding author Andrew Yen from Cornell University discovered that the FGR protein—traditionally considered a cancer-promoting molecule—can instead trigger leukaemia cells to mature.
This effect mirrors the response usually induced by retinoic acid (RA); a compound derived from vitamin A that is widely used in cancer therapy.
Their finding presents a potential new path for therapies targeting acute myeloid leukaemia (AML) and related cancers.
Acute myeloid leukaemia is often treated using RA-based therapies that force immature white blood cells to mature, slowing their rapid growth.
Retinoic acid works through complex signalling and gene regulation involving a group of proteins that orchestrate this transformation.
In this study, the team used HL-60 cells, a model for human leukaemia, and engineered them to express FGR.
Surprisingly, the presence of FGR alone was enough to make these cells mature in a way almost identical to what happens with RA treatment.
They began producing well-known markers of maturation such as CD38 and CD11b, generated reactive oxygen species (ROS), and expressed the inhibitor of the cell cycle, p27, all signs that the cells had shifted from a cancer-like, fast-dividing state to a more specialised, mature form.
Further analysis revealed that FGR activated a group of proteins known as the “signalsome,” which helps trigger the changes needed for cells to differentiate.
This same group is typically activated by RA.
“Notably, FGR induces the expression of genes targeted by RAR/RXR, such as cd38 and blr1, even without RA.”
To test its potential use in treatment-resistant leukaemias, the researchers introduced FGR into RA-resistant HL-60 cells.
In these, FGR did not cause the same maturation process, which suggests that there are other problems with cell signalling that stop both the RA and FGR pathways.
This result highlights the complexity of resistance mechanisms and the need for additional research.
These findings challenge the traditional view of FGR as strictly a cancer-driving protein.
Instead, in this specific context, it appears to initiate anti-cancer behaviour.
That a single protein can reproduce the effects of a complex therapeutic compound like RA is both surprising and promising.
If future research confirms this study’s results in more advanced models, FGR could become a new tool for developing therapies for AML and potentially other blood cancers.
Source:Impact Journals LLC