‘Research Team of the Year’ award

‘Research Team of the Year’ award. Jun 2010, PR 141/10 Dr Jo Morris and Amin Alamshah from the Cancer Genetics Group at King's have been awarded Breast Cancer Campaign's 'Research Team of the Year' prize for their ground-breaking work in the area of breast cancer. Dr Morris and Mr Alamshah looked at the role Small Ubiquitin-like Modifier (SUMO) proteins play in relation to the breast cancer gene BRCA1. The team discovered a family of these SUMO proteins could track down sites in the body where DNA damage has occurred, attach themselves to normal proteins, and guide them in fixing the genetic faults. Failure to repair this damage can lead to cell death and trigger diseases such as cancer. The discovery was made by observing the way cancer cells behave in the laboratory. It is hoped this new knowledge may help scientists develop drugs which work with common cancer treatments, such as chemotherapy and radiotherapy, to kill cancerous cells and allow the body to reproduce healthy new ones.