A magic bullet for targeting cancers with supernumerary centrosomes

Abstract

Centrosome amplification is frequently observed in aggressive human cancers, and it has been proposed as a promising target in cancer therapy. Work by Mariappan et al (2019) in this issue details the identification of a small‐molecule inhibitor that perturbs the CPAP–tubulin interaction, prevents efficient centrosome clustering during mitosis, and exhibits in vivo anti‐tumor activity. This study demonstrates the potential of developing tumor‐specific treatment by specifically targeting centrosome amplification.