Cornell uses AlphaFold to uncover new class of cellular 'off switch' linked to cancer
Dr_Singularity · x · 2026-09-10
Cornell researchers used AlphaFold to discover a previously unknown class of proteins that act as an "off switch" for Arf1, a key regulator of intracellular protein transport. Published Sept. 9 in the Journal of Cell Biology.
- The little-studied protein Avl9 switches off Arf1 at the right time; without this, cellular transport becomes disorganized, a process often disrupted in cancer.
- Avl9 appears to belong to a broader family of proteins performing the same function, revealing an unrecognized cellular balancing system.
- Lab experiments confirmed the mechanism, and disrupting it altered the movement of human lung cancer cells.
- Led by professor Chris Fromme, the work shows how AI-driven protein structure prediction can rapidly surface entirely new regulatory mechanisms relevant to cancer pathways.
Related event: Cornell uses AlphaFold to find hidden off-switch for cancer cell movement(2 posts)→
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