How cancer begins
Cells become cancerous after acquiring a series of mutations in their DNA, which occur as a result of exposure to radiation, cigarette smoke, dietary components or a genetic predisposition.
Mutations may intensify or eliminate the messages cells use to grow, stop growing or die. Cells then begin to divide too often and are unable to die, forming tumors. Identifying the mutations, signals and mechanisms that promote and sustain tumors creates new opportunities to target human cancer.
Director's statement
We’ve brought together scientists with expertise in developmental and stem cell biology with investigators who focus on RNA biology and the signaling pathways that regulate cell growth and cell fate. The diversity of our faculty members, along with our shared interests in what drives cancer cell growth, is fostering strong interactions that will lead to breakthrough treatments for brain, breast and prostate cancers, as well as melanoma and leukemia.
– Robert Wechsler-Reya, Ph.D., Program Director
Appointments
Publications
EGFR-Pak Signaling Selectively Regulates Glutamine Deprivation-Induced Macropinocytosis.
Lee SW, Zhang Y, Jung M, Cruz N, Alas B, Commisso C
Dev Cell 2019 Aug 5 ;50(3):381-392.e5
Lsd1 as a therapeutic target in Gfi1-activated medulloblastoma.
Lee C, Rudneva VA, Erkek S, Zapatka M, Chau LQ, Tacheva-Grigorova SK, Garancher A, Rusert JM, Aksoy O, Lea R, Mohammad HP, Wang J, Weiss WA, Grimes HL, Pfister SM, Northcott PA, Wechsler-Reya RJ
Nat Commun 2019 Jan 18 ;10(1):332
Gut microbiota dependent anti-tumor immunity restricts melanoma growth in Rnf5-/- mice.
Li Y, Tinoco R, Elmén L, Segota I, Xian Y, Fujita Y, Sahu A, Zarecki R, Marie K, Feng Y, Khateb A, Frederick DT, Ashkenazi SK, Kim H, Perez EG, Day CP, Segura Muñoz RS, Schmaltz R, Yooseph S, Tam MA, Zhang T, Avitan-Hersh E, Tzur L, Roizman S, Boyango I, Bar-Sela G, Orian A, Kaufman RJ, Bosenberg M, Goding CR, Baaten B, Levesque MP, Dummer R, Brown K, Merlino G, Ruppin E, Flaherty K, Ramer-Tait A, Long T, Peterson SN, Bradley LM, Ronai ZA
Nat Commun 2019 Apr 2 ;10(1):1492
Targeting FBXO44/SUV39H1 elicits tumor cell-specific DNA replication stress and viral mimicry.
Shen JZ, Spruck C
Cell Stress 2021 Feb 18 ;5(3):37-39
Structure-based virtual screening identifies an 8-hydroxyquinoline as a small molecule GLI1 inhibitor.
Dash RC, Wen J, Zaino AM, Morel SR, Chau LQ, Wechsler-Reya RJ, Hadden MK
Mol Ther Oncolytics 2021 Mar 26 ;20:265-276
Cytoplasmic chromatin fragments-from mechanisms to therapeutic potential.
Miller KN, Dasgupta N, Liu T, Adams PD, Vizioli MG
Elife 2021 Jan 29 ;10
Small-molecule screen reveals synergy of cell cycle checkpoint kinase inhibitors with DNA-damaging chemotherapies in medulloblastoma.
Endersby R, Whitehouse J, Pribnow A, Kuchibhotla M, Hii H, Carline B, Gande S, Stripay J, Ancliffe M, Howlett M, Schoep T, George C, Andradas C, Dyer P, Schluck M, Patterson B, Tacheva-Gigorova SK, Cooper MN, Robinson G, Stewart C, Pfister SM, Kool M, Milde T, Gajjar A, Johns T, Wechsler-Reya RJ, Roussel MF, Gottardo NG
Sci Transl Med 2021 Jan 20 ;13(577)
FBXO44 promotes DNA replication-coupled repetitive element silencing in cancer cells.
Shen JZ, Qiu Z, Wu Q, Finlay D, Garcia G, Sun D, Rantala J, Barshop W, Hope JL, Gimple RC, Sangfelt O, Bradley LM, Wohlschlegel J, Rich JN, Spruck C
Cell 2021 Jan 21 ;184(2):352-369.e23
Triple‑negative breast cancer therapy: Current and future perspectives (Review).
Won KA, Spruck C
Int J Oncol 2020 Dec ;57(6):1245-1261