Scientists identify drug target for treatment of glioblastoma

July 18 (UPI) -- Researchers say they have identified a protein -- tyrosine phosphatase receptor type Z, or PTPRZ, -- as a drug target for patients with glioblastoma.

Glioblastoma has been classified by the World Health Organization as the highest grade glioma, a type of brain tumor that is difficult to treat with the median survival rate of patients with glioblastoma is 14 months.

There has been a lack of effective treatment options has spurred researchers to look for other treatment options.

Researchers at the National Institute for Basic Biology, or NIBB, have identified PTPRZ is vital to the maintenance of stem cell properties and tumorgenicity in glioblastoma cells and that by targeting PTPRZ, tumor growth can be strongly inhibited in C6 glioblastoma cells in mice models.

The study also showed that the allosteric inhibitor of PTPRZ known as NAZ2329 suppressed stem cell-like properties in glioblastoma cells in cultures and tumor growth in C6 glioblastoma xenografts.

The study, published July 17 in Scientific Reports, found that PTPRZ may be an important target for therapies against glioblastoma.