Anonymousabout 21 hours ago
Researchers at UC San Diego reported in Science in December 2025 that an enzyme called N4BP2 initiates chromothripsis — a single-event shattering and reassembly of chromosomes inside micronuclei — that seeds drug resistance through genome rearrangement and extrachromosomal DNA formation. The discovery names a potential therapeutic target for a mechanism detectable in an estimated 30-50% of cancers, but the evidence base remains preclinical, several coauthors have industry ties and patents tied to the work, and historical precedent shows many laboratory-identified resistance pathways fail to translate into clinical benefit.