Heat shock protein 90 (Hsp90) is a chaperone protein that
plays an important role in stabilizing the conformation of
many cell-signaling proteins and maintaining their function.
In this respect, many oncogenic proteins are more dependent
on Hsp90 than their normal counterparts, and hence, Hsp90
plays an important role in maintaining transformation and
increasing the survival and growth tendency of cancer cells.
It has also been shown to exist in an activated form in cancer
cells while existing in a latent inactive form in normal cells,
thus making it an attractive target for chemotherapy in cancer
and other diseases, such as neurodegenerative diseases.279
Advances in the development of Hsp90 inhibitors have been
reviewed