The JAK2 enzyme is a regulatory kinase (it chemically modifies other proteins and their function) that forms a unique mutation in many patients with myeloproliferative disorders (MPD). This mutation inhibits the “off switch” for red blood cell production so that patients with this abnormality develop too many red cells and a disease called polycythemia vera. Through the work of our clinical-physician associates CR&T is involved in research currently under way to find a way to turn back “on” the “off switch” function so that red cells are no longer produced in excess.
JAK2 is already serving an important clinical function by assisting physicians in a more accurate diagnosis of MPD, prediction of the disease’s progression and providing an insight regarding possible treatments. JAK2 is found in nearly all patients with polycythemia vera and in varying proportions in other MPD patients.
Like the discovery of the Philadelphia chromosome in 1960, attempts to design a molecularly targeted therapy to meet the challenge of the JAK2 kinase will hopefully lead to a successful targeted therapy like Gleevec.
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