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Login to My HealthResearch and Clinical Trials
USC urologists, oncologists and researchers are constantly looking at ways to improve patient care in the entire realm of urology. Specifically, in the field of kidney cancer, here’s a sampling of recent and current studies:
Kidney cancer and EphrinB2 targeting: Kidney cancer is unique in that the genetic predisposition from the loss of a normal gene (VHL) results in very high levels of a blood vessel growth factor – VEGF. Increased levels of this growth factor result in high EphrinB2 and Notch receptors. We have thus developed inhibitors of Notch receptor as well as EphrinB2. The first clinical trial is scheduled to begin in the early part of 2011. The goal of this trial is to gain insight as to the impact of therapy on the cancer stem cells and potential to achieve tumor eradication.
The dynamics of DNA methylation in human cells.
CpG methylation of DNA has been shown to be fundamentally important in genetic imprinting, cancer, and mammalian development. Our laboratory developed a genetic system using EBV-based stable episomes to dissect the impact of DNA methylation on gene regulation in human cells. This system has provided us with a unique opportunity to understand the role of methylation in gene regulation and to dissect the control of methylation changes. The understanding of how DNA methylation is controlled and the impact of DNA methylation on gene regulation would provide answers to cancer and developmental processes.
The interplay between chromatin structure, DNA methylation, and gene regulation. Chromatin is the packaging of the DNA in the human genome. The genome provides the information for the cell, but the packaging is important in dictating how the information is accessed. DNA methylation is a heritable but adjustable form of genetic information. Deciphering the inter-reliance and interplay between the DNA, DNA methylation and chromatin is fundamental to all aspects of human health and disease, including urologic cancers (bladder cancer, prostate cancer, and renal cell carcinoma). We utilized and developed several new methods to dissect the interaction between gene expression, DNA methylation, and chromatin modification. The understanding of these inter-relationships will permit us to develop therapeutically intervention of many genetic diseases as well as cancers.
