Issues

Cancer cells require heightened numbers of nuclear pore complexes (NPC) and increased NPC synthesis relative to normal cells, but targeting this essential cellular component has not generally been considered feasible. Sakuma and colleagues showed that depletion of NPC components preferentially kills cancer cells by causing nuclear transport failure, aberrant gene expression, and DNA-damage accumulation, whereas normal cells exhibited only a reversible state of cell-cycle arrest. In vivo, this corresponded with regression of melanoma and colorectal cancer xenograft tumors along with inhibition of leukemia cell proliferation. This work suggests that, contrary to the common assumption, targeting the NPC may be a viable strategy for anticancer therapies. For more information, see the article by Sakuma and colleagues on page 176.