The Gene Regulation in Cancer Group, the Rare Disease Research and Therapeutics Development Group and the Plant Molecular Biology Group published in the “International Journal of Molecular Sciences“ a paper entitled “Transcriptomic Landscape of Paclitaxel-Induced Multidrug Resistance in 3D Cultures of Colon Cancer Cell Line DLD1”. 

Colon cancer often comes back because tumors become resistant to multiple drugs. In this study, colon cancer cells were grown as 3D cultures and exposed to paclitaxel to mimic drug resistance. These resistant cells also showed reduced sensitivity to other standard therapies, including oxaliplatin and 5-fluorouracil. Gene expression analysis revealed that genes related to drug detoxification were upregulated, while those involved in cell adhesion and transport were downregulated. Key finding is that increased production of ribosomes may help cancer cells survive treatment. Targeting these changes could lead to new ways to beat drug resistance in colon cancer. 

The study was performed in collaboration with colleagues from the Institute for Biological Research “Siniša Stanković”.