Patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia, CLL, often have a very varying disease course. Researchers at IGP have in collaboration with colleagues in Gothenburg and in Italy, found a link between worse prognosis and regulation of the gene ANGPT2. ANGPT2 is important for disease progression in CLL and regulating gene activity might therefore be a possible target for therapy in this as yet incurable disease.

Blood vessels form a tube system that supplies all tissues in the body with oxygen and nutrients. When a new blood vessel is formed there is initially no cavity inside but as the vessel matures a tube is established with an inside and an outside. In a recent article in Nature Communications Lena Claesson-Welsh’s research group shows that the protein VE-PTP regulates the maturation of blood vessels into tubes. The results explain why blood vessels in tumours often lack a cavity.

Knowledge about how proteins interact with each other is essential for understanding cellular function. With a new method, developed at IGP, researchers can simultaneously study several different proteins in individual cells. The method might contribute to the development of improved diagnostics and new drugs.