Related Experiment Video

Updated: May 20, 2026

Reverse Yeast Two-hybrid System to Identify Mammalian Nuclear Receptor Residues that Interact with Ligands and/or Antagonists
10:51

Reverse Yeast Two-hybrid System to Identify Mammalian Nuclear Receptor Residues that Interact with Ligands and/or Antagonists

Published on: November 15, 2013

Exploration of a new drug that targets YAP

Makiko Fujii1

  • 1Division of Molecular Oncology, Aichi Cancer Center Research Institute, 1-1 Kanokoden, Chikusa-ku, Nagoya, Aichi 464-8681, Japan. fujiim@aichi-cc.jp

Journal of Biochemistry
|July 5, 2012
PubMed

Insights

Dobutamine, a drug, was found to inhibit the growth of tumors by blocking the Yes-associated protein (YAP) from entering the cell nucleus. This discovery offers a potential new cancer treatment strategy.

Area of Science:

  • Oncology
  • Molecular Biology
  • Pharmacology

Background:

  • Yes-associated protein (YAP) is crucial for tumor growth.
  • YAP nuclear translocation regulates genes for cell proliferation.
  • Inhibiting YAP nuclear entry is a potential cancer therapy.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To identify compounds that modulate YAP localization.
  • To explore novel cancer treatment strategies targeting YAP.

Main Methods:

  • Screening of compounds using human osteosarcoma cells expressing Green Fluorescent Protein-labeled YAP (GFP-YAP).
  • Monitoring subcellular localization of GFP-YAP to assess compound effects.
  • Utilizing a cell-based assay to evaluate YAP-dependent transcription.

Main Results:

  • Dobutamine, a beta-adrenergic receptor agonist, was identified as an inhibitor of YAP.
  • Dobutamine attenuated YAP-dependent transcription by preventing nuclear translocation.
  • The study demonstrated dobutamine's effect on YAP in a cellular model.

Conclusions:

  • Dobutamine shows potential as a therapeutic agent for cancer treatment.
  • Targeting YAP nuclear translocation is a viable strategy for inhibiting tumor growth.
  • Further research into dobutamine's anti-cancer properties is warranted.

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