A gene, a protein, three diseases concerned

Besides its role in tumour progression, the protein KIAA1199 may also be linked to other human diseases when not properly expressed: certain types of congenital deafness and chronic inflammatory diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis. “In the first case, the protein doesn’t correctly function and in the second case, it is overexpressed”, Alain Chariot points out. “Our work is therefore likely to gain interest from research teams who study mechanisms underlying cancerous and inflammatory diseases, and lesions of the inner ear". Beginning with fundamental research on a genetic disease, the scientist and his colleagues progressed step by step, guided by their intuition and their observations, and revealed a molecular player and the consequences of its deregulation in seemingly very distinct diseases. Carried out mainly thanks to the support of WELBIO, the FNRS, Télévie, the Belgian Federation against Cancer and the Anti-Cancer Centre, this work is still in progress and now includes the collaboration of a couple of additional ULg’s laboratories. “We have launched a collaboration with the teams of Professor Brigitte Malgrange of GIGA-Neurosciences and Professor Michel Malaise from the Rheumatology Department at Liège’s CHU”, Alain Chariot continues. “We shall continue to work on the role of KIAA1199 in cancer, Professor Brigitte Malgrange’s team on the congenital deafness aspect and Professor Malaise's team on the role of KIAA119 in rheumatoid arthritis”. Among other things, the researchers will generate mouse models where the gene coding for KIAA1199 will be inactivated so that they can address whether this genetic inactivation causes any delay in the development of mammary tumours or rheumatoid arthritis. “We think that in one way or the other, the connection with EGFR or with other members of this family is important in these three diseases. We are working on validating this assumption”, Alain Chariot concludes.