However, there are no drugs that specifically block MAPK4 that could be tested to reduce tumor growth. Instead, Yang and his colleagues explored an alternative approach.

We showed that blocking both AKT and PDK1 effectively repressed MAPK4-induced cancer cell growth, suggesting a potential therapeutic strategy to treat MAPK4-dependent cancers, such as a subset of TNBC, prostate and lung cancer.

“In this study we have not only advanced our understanding of the molecular mechanism underlying the tumor-promoting activity of MAPK4, we also have found a potential novel therapeutic approach for human cancers,” Yang said.

Cattle may seem like uniquely American animals, steeped in the lore of cowboys, cattle drives and sprawling ranches. But cattle didn’t exist on the American continents prior to the arrival of the Spanish, who brought livestock with them from Europe by way of the Canary Islands.

In a new study, researchers analyzed ancient DNA from Spanish settlements in the Caribbean and Mexico. Their results indicate cattle were also imported from Africa early in the process of colonization, more than 100 years before their arrival was officially documented.

Records kept by Portuguese and Spanish colonists reference breeds from the Andalusian region of Spain but make no mention of transporting cattle from Africa. Some historians have interpreted this omission to mean that the first wave of colonists relied entirely on a small stock of European cattle initially shipped to the Caribbean Islands.

COVID-19 turned city streets into pop-up restaurants. What if we didn’t go back?

Dr. Scott O’Neill (PhD, FAA, FAAAS) is Founder of the World Mosquito Program (https://www.worldmosquitoprogram.org/en/work/about-us/team/scott-oneill) and Professor at Monash University (https://lens.monash.edu/@scott-oneill), where he leads a large international research collaboration (formerly known as Eliminate Dengue), which is focused on developing the Wolbachia bacteria as a novel method to block the transmission of dengue fever and other mosquito-transmitted viral diseases, such as Zika and chikungunya. This global, not-for-profit program is currently conducting field trials of the Wolbachia method in multiple countries, in areas where these diseases are endemic, working closely with communities, local health organizations and governments to implement its self-sustaining method through controlled releases.

Dr. O’Neill has spent his academic career at the University of Illinois, Yale University, the University of Queensland and Monash, where he was previously the dean of the Faculty of Science.

Dr. O’Neill is internationally recognized for his contributions to the field of insect symbiosis and the way the intimate bacterial associations of invertebrates are ubiquitous and can generate major effects on the reproductive physiology, developmental biology and ecology of the insects they infect. His work has made major contributions to understanding how insect symbionts exert their effects and the consequences for infected hosts.