Eberhart and colleagues studied glioblastoma cell lines to investigate the effects of a gamma-secretase inhibitor, a medication that blocks the Notch receptor, on tumor growth.
The project, which is being led by Eberhart Zrenner, involves implanting chips into the eyes of seven people who have lost the ir sight to a disease called retinitis pigmentosa.
Clinical trials evaluating inhibitors of Hedgehog or Notch in a number of cancer types are currently under way at Johns Hopkins and several other sites across the country, Eberhart says.