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New DiscoveriesMarch 24, 2017

Cholesterol levels in the lysosome linked to growth signals

At the junction of growth and starvation stands a signaling protein called mechanistic Target of Rapamycin Complex 1 (mTORC1). Inside the cell, mTORC1 regulates metabolism, growth, protein and organelle recycling (autophagy), proliferation, and survival. When something goes wrong in the pathway, various diseases such as cancer, obesity, and type 2 diabetes, can develop. An outstanding challenge is to understand how mTORC1 becomes activated in response to a wide variety of stimuli including nutrients, growth factors, and stressors, in normal and cancer states.

New DiscoveriesMarch 14, 2017

Determining how the immune system becomes exhausted

Anjana Rao, PhD (Damon Runyon Fellow ’79), and James Scott-Browne, PhD (Damon Runyon Fellow ’11-’13), at the La Jolla Institute for Allergy and Immunology, La Jolla, and colleagues, are focusing on a key issue of how tumor-fighting T cells can lose their effectiveness or become “exhausted.” The researchers identified two proteins, NFAT and Nr4a, that can bind to the DNA of T cells and shut down their tumor-fighting activity. Next steps will be to determine if these processes can be interfered with or reversed in order to re-motivate immune cells to eradicate a pati

New DiscoveriesFebruary 27, 2017

New insights into lung cancer relapse and spread

Don X. Nguyen, PhD (Damon Runyon Fellow ’05-’08), of Yale Cancer Center, New Haven, and colleagues, reported new findings that explain the propensity of latent lung adenocarcinoma (LUAD) to relapse. They showed that differential expression of extracellular matrix (ECM) molecules and their interacting proteins contributes to risk of relapse in distinct LUAD subtypes. One protein called hyaluronan receptor HMMR, when overexpressed, was associated with inflammation and poor prognosis.

New DiscoveriesFebruary 23, 2017

Identification of new cell types that support growth of pancreatic cancer

Christine Iok In Chio, PhD (Damon Runyon Shirley Stein Fellow ’13-’17), in the laboratory of her sponsor David Tuveson, MD, PhD, and colleagues at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, Cold Spring Harbor, created a new 3D model of pancreatic cancer, which allowed them to identify two distinct stroma cell populations called cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAF’s), that work together with cancer cells to protect and help the tumor grow.

New DiscoveriesJanuary 25, 2017

Curbing inflammation after radiation therapy slows pancreatic tumor growth in mice

Gregory L. Beatty, MD, PhD (Damon Runyon-Nadia’s Gift Foundation Innovator ’12-’15) and colleagues at the Abramson Cancer Center at University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, reported high levels of inflammatory compounds in mice with pancreatic tumors. These included CCL2, a signaling molecule that promotes recruitment of inflammatory white blood cells by tumors. This likely contributes to the protective tumor microenvironment that makes most pancreatic tumors resistant to treatment. CCL2 levels increased further after the mice received radiotherapy.

New DiscoveriesJanuary 24, 2017

BRCA1 gene is required for blood forming stem cells

Theodora S. Ross, MD, PhD (Damon Runyon Scholar ’01-’03), and colleagues at UT Southwestern, Dallas, reported that the BRCA1 gene is required for the survival of blood forming stem cells. This could explain why patients with BRCA1 mutations do not have an elevated risk for leukemia; the stem cells die before they have an opportunity to transform into a blood cancer. These results also suggest that these patients may be at higher risk for the serious side effects of chemotherapy. The study was published in Cell Reports.

New DiscoveriesJanuary 23, 2017

2017 Richard Lounsbery Award

Pardis C. Sabeti, MD, DPhil (Damon Runyon Fellow ‘04-‘06) of Harvard University, Cambridge, will receive the 2017 Richard Lounsbery Award from the National Academy of Sciences. She is recognized for her groundbreaking contributions including the development of new methods to study evolutionary selection in humans and viruses; the creation of new collaborative models for combatting emerging diseases across disciplinary and national borders; and leadership of global efforts to increase data sharing in pandemics such as Ebola and Lassa Fever.

New DiscoveriesJanuary 23, 2017

2017 McEwen Award for Innovation

Elaine V. Fuchs, PhD (Damon Runyon Board Member, Damon Runyon Fellow ‘77-‘79) of The Rockefeller University, New York, has been named the recipient of the 2017 McEwen Award for Innovation. The prize, given by the International Society for Stem Cell Research, recognizes groundbreaking work pertaining to stem cells or regenerative medicine. Dr. Fuchs studies adult skin stem cells, how they make and repair tissues, and how cancers develop.

New DiscoveriesJanuary 23, 2017

New genomic features of cervical cancer identified

Akinyemi I. Ojesina, MBBS, PhD (Damon Runyon Fellow ’08-’11), of University of Alabama at Birmingham, worked with The Cancer Genome Atlas Research Network to identify novel genomic and molecular characteristics of cervical cancer that will aid in the subclassification of the disease and may help define personalized therapies for each individual patient.

New DiscoveriesJanuary 13, 2017

Controlling protein production in cancer cells

Elaine V. Fuchs, PhD (Damon Runyon Board Member, Damon Runyon Fellow ‘77-‘79) and Shruti Naik, PhD (Damon Runyon Fellow ’14-’18) at The Rockefeller University, New York, and colleagues, found that skin squamous cell carcinomas alter the protein-making machinery to preferentially use tumor-related mRNAs, leading to the production of proteins important for cancer progression. This switch is linked to a ribosome initiation factor called eIF2 and transition initiation factor eIF2A.