Gurova Lab

Curaxins were discovered in a cell-based screening for novel type of activators of tumor suppressor p53.  The search for the mechanism of action of curaxins brought us to the field of chromatin biology, since curaxins appeared to be the “first in the class” – pure “chromatin damaging” compounds.  

The current focus of our research is understanding the chromatin alterations in cancer, the reasons chromatin destabilization is more toxic for tumor than for normal cells, how chromatin stability is regulated, and whether it is possible to utilize some chromatin remodeling factors, e.g., histone chaperone, as targets for anti-cancer treatment. 

See the science: 

• Regulation of Chromatin Stability
• Chromatin Damaging Anti-Cancer Therapy
• Function of Histone Chaperone FACT
• P53 as the Guardian of the Epigenome