Discovery of protein's role in making platelets may aid multiple myeloma patients

A University of Utah School of Medicine-led study has identified a previously unknown but crucial component in the process to make platelets, a discovery that could help spare multiple myeloma patients from a dangerous side effect of the primary drug (bortezomib) used to treat their cancer. The researchers show that when the proteasome, which is a protein complex that breaks down the proteins that regulate cellular processes, is pharmaceutically inhibited platelet production in human and mice cells was blocked. Read more here.