Structural analysis of factors related to FAM3C/ILEI dimerization and identification of inhibitor candidates targeting cancer treatment

FAM3 is a superfamily of four cytokines that maintain a single globular structure beta - beta - alpha of three classes: FAM3A, B, C and D. FAM3C was the first member of this family related to cancer and is functionally charac-terized as an essential factor for the epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT), leading to late delays in tumor progression. Due to its crucial role in EMT and metastasis, FAM3C has been termed an interleukin-like EMT (ILEI) inducer. There are several studies on the part of FAM3C in the progression of cancer and other diseases. However, little is known about its cellular receptors and possible inhibitors. In this study, based on in silico approaches, we performed structural analyses of factors related to FAM3C/ILEI dimerization. We also identified four possible inhibitor candidates, expected to be exciting prototypes and could be submitted to future biological tests targeting cancer treatment.

Automated summary

FAM3 is a superfamily of cytokines that have a crucial role in cancer progression, particularly FAM3C which induces epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT). Despite extensive research on the role of FAM3C in cancer and other diseases, little is known about its cellular receptors and possible inhibitors. In this study, structural analyses of factors related to FAM3C/ILEI dimerization were performed, and four potential inhibitor candidates were identified for future biological tests targeting cancer treatment.