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Faculty & Staff
Junjie Chen, Ph.D. (Chairman)
Research interests:
- New components involved in DNA damage pathways
- Molecular mechanisms of genomic instability and tumorigenesis
- Tumor-suppressing qualities of the mitotic checkpoint protein Chfr
- The role of the protein deacetylase SIRT1 in aging and tumorigenesis
Research Interests:
- Metabolic signaling in cancer development, aging and stem cell maintenance
- Developing effective therapies targeting metabolic pathways in cancer treatment
- The role of FoxO/TSC/LKB1 tumor suppressor network in cancer metabolism, aging and stem cell biology
- Use of sophisticated genetically engineered mouse models
Research Interests:
- The role of cyclin E in breast and salivary tumorigenesis
- Generating transgenic mice to determine the requirement of LMW cyclin E for tumor maintenance and recurrence
- Identifying potential LMW-E/CDK2 substrates on a proteome-wide scale that could serve as targets for treatment of triple negative breast cancer
- Identifying the salivary gland-specific cyclin E-associated kinase that drives cyclin E-induced salivary gland cancer
Research Interests:
- Molecular mechanisms of DNA damage repair and cell cycle checkpoint mechanisms
- How DNA damage is sensed and transduced into checkpoint signals
- Interaction of chromatin remodeling mechanisms with DNA repair and damage checkpoint pathways
- Repair of DNA interstrand cross-links, as many chemotherapy agents are bifunctional DNA cross-linkers
- Molecular mechanisms of Fanconi anemia
Research Interests:
- Understand regulation of tumor invasion, metastasis, and epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) by non-coding RNAs
- Dissecting the role of miR-10b in malignant progression using genetically engineered mouse models.
- Identifying the functional targets of metastasis-promoting miRNAs
- Identifying and characterizing new epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT)-regulating miRNA
- Identifying lncRNAs that regulate EMT and metastasis
Research Interests:
- In vitro and in vivo investigations on chemoradiotherapy, particularly taxanes
- Combining molecular targeting agents with radiotherapy to treat cancers of the upper aerodigestive tract and head and neck
- Discovery of new agents that can protect, mitigate, or treat radiation injuries from clinical exposure, accidents, or radiation terrorism
Research Interests:
- The effects of radiation and chemotherapy on male germ cells
Research Interests:
- Effects of radiation on male reproduction and testicular cancer
- Hormonal manipulations to minimize the sterilizing effects of cancer agents
- The mechanism of the radiation induction of testicular cancer during fetal life
Wei Zhou, Ph.D.
Research Interests:
- Investigate the molecular mechanisms of hormones, including testosterone and estradiol, in the block and recovery of spermatogenesis after irradiation
- Development of clinical treatments to help regain fertility and treat dysregulated hormone functions in men
- Investigating the roles of orphan nuclear receptor ERRβ in cancer chemoprevention
Research Interests:
- Molecular targeted agents combined with radiotherapy
- The role of the epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT) in governing tumor cell response to radiation
Luka Milas, M.D., Ph.D.
Research Interests:
- Understanding the biologic processes that govern tumor response to radiation and other cytotoxic agents
- Exploring new approaches to improving radio (chemo) therapy by enhancing tumor radio (chemo) response or by decreasing normal tissue toxicity
Research Interests:
- Studying Wnt pathways in cancer cells, embryonic stem cells, frog embryogenesis, mouse intestine and skin.
- Regulation of telomerase in regeneration and disease
Research Interests:
- Normal tissue complications of cancer treatments
- The genetic basis of radiation induced pulmonary fibrosis
- Mechanisms of radiation-induced alveolitis
- Protection and mitigation of radiation injury in normal tissues.
Research Interests:
- Mechanisms of radiation-induced lung fibrosis in mice with a focus on the role of transforming growth factor beta (TGF β) and its signaling pathway in development of fibrosis
- Therapeutic efficacy of insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF-1) receptor, poly-ADP-ribose polymerase (PARP), and integrin inhibitors on radiosensitivity of head and neck, lung and breast cancer cells
- The radiosensitization effects and mechanisms of cardiac glycosides
Research Interests:
- Test the hypothesis that targeting of molecules whose functions are well-regulated in normal cells but deregulated in cancer cells may improve tumor response
- Preclinical evaluation of several molecularly targeted agents
- Identification of cellular proteins and/pathways in DNA repair that are responsible for the resistant phenotype of cancer cells
- Characterization of cancer stem cell markers involved in resistance, recurrence and metastatic spread