VDRHSE Talks: KRAS Protein

Stella Begovich
4th Year Undergraduate
Department of Biochemistry

KRAS is a plasma-membrane anchored protein that regulates various cellular processes such as immune response, cell replication, and cell structure. The KRAS gene is one of the most frequently mutated genes that causes cancer. Mutations in the KRAS gene are known to cause some of the most lethal cancers such as lung cancer, colorectal cancer, and pancreatic cancer by causing uncontrolled cell growth or immune system evasion. What our research aims to do is to screen a library of 63 compounds generated using AI that are predicted to bind to KRAS mutants and inhibit their activation. Currently, we are in the process of developing KRAS mutant cell lines and a protein interaction detection method to screen the compounds. This research may potentially uncover one or more novel drug candidates that inhibits multiple different KRAS mutants to treat various types of cancers and provide a deeper understanding of KRAS.

Office of the Vice Dean, Research and Health Science Education
Temerty Faculty of Medicine
University of Toronto