Columbia University Medical Center (CUMC) scientists have demonstrated that two related enzymes — phosphoinositide-3 kinase (PI3K) gamma and delta — play a key role in the development of T-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia (T-ALL), a highly aggressive childhood leukemia that is difficult to treat. The study also showed that a dual PI3K gamma/delta inhibitor can significantly prolong survival in a mouse model of the disease. Further, the dual inhibitor was shown to prevent proliferation and to reduce the survival rate of human T-ALL cells in laboratory cultures, setting the stage for clinical trials. The study appears today in the online edition of Cancer Cell.
