Chief Investigator:

Professor Shudong Wang

Funding Amount:

$75,000

Recipient:

University of South Australia

Overview:

Mixed lineage leukaemia (MLL) is the most aggressive blood cancer in infants and paediatric patients. No effective treatment is available to patients affecting by the disease. MLL is characterized by the presence of multiple fusion proteins that stimulate transcriptional elongation of MLL related leukemic genes. Cyclin-dependent kinase 9 (CDK9) controls the transcriptional elongation. Blocking CDK9 activity by our innovative CDK9 inhibitor induces MLL cells death. This project offers a CDK9 inhibitor drug candidate as a new, effective and safe treatment for childhood leukaemia.