Although RAS driven signaling pathways have been established as central cancer drivers in several human malignancies, the current therapeutic strategies against these cancers are not curative. This indicates that current strategies are not able to shut-down the critical oncogenic activities downstream of RAS in cancer cells in which also the RAS antagonist PP2A is inhibited. The breakthrough potential of the work now funded by the Jane and Aatos Erkko foundation is based on newly identified downstream processes in which RAS/PP2A (de)phosphorylation activities converge and access to newly discovered PP2A reactivator therapies. Understanding of how RAS/PP2A impacts epigenetic gene regulation and rRNA processing might not only reveal yet unidentified oncogenic mechanisms, but also explain intrinsic resistance of cancer cells to epigenetic drugs currently in the clinical trials.

Jane and Aatos Erkko Foundation supports high-level, international scientific research as well as arts and culture.