CtBP and its interactome, which includes class 1 histone deacetylases, demethylases (e.g., KDM1), and other chromatin modifiers, contribute to malignant progression by corepressing proapoptotic and tumor-suppressing genes, and coactivating oncogenes (Fig. 1A; refs. 6, 12–14). The gene discussed is CTBP1; the disease is neoplasm.