  We reexamine the longstanding no-go excluding all potentially viable SO(10)
-> SU(3)_c x SU(2)_L x U(1)_Y symmetry breaking patterns within the minimal
renormalizable non-supersymmetric SO(10) GUT framework featuring the
45-dimensional adjoint representation in the Higgs sector. A simple symmetry
argument indicates that quantum effects do change the vacuum structure of the
model dramatically. A thorough analysis of the one-loop effective potential
reveals that the phenomenologically favoured symmetry breaking chains passing
through the SU(4)_C x SU(2)_L x U(1)_R or SU(3)_c x SU(2)_L x SU(2)_R x
U(1)_B-L intermediate stages are, indeed, supported at the quantum level. This
brings the class of minimal non-supersymmetric SO(10) GUTs back from oblivion,
providing a new ground for a potentially realistic model building.
