Postdoctoral Fellows
Ruolan Han (Ruolan_Han@urmc.rochester.edu)
My research interest has been focused on understanding the adverse effects that cancer chemotherapeutic agents cause on the cells of the central nervous system, especially the delayed damage. My current goal is to identify agents and treatments to protect normal neural cells without mitigating the anti-cancer efficacy of chemotherapy, especially the treatments that can be readily applied to clinical use.
WanChang Cui (Wanchang_Cui@urmc.rochester.edu)
WanChang's research is focused on studying the combined toxicity of low level environmental toxicants and chemotherapeutics on O-2A cells.
Graduate Students (top)
Ibro Ambeskovic (Ibro_Ambeskovic@urmc.rochester.edu)
Redox regulation of precursors.
Jun Wang (Jun_Wang@urmc.rochester.edu)
Jun is currently focused on the application of Tumor Stem Cell biology to study the cell(s)-of-origin of gliomas; and understanding how the differentiation states of cell(s)-of-origin relate to histopathology and chemoresistance of gliomas.
Other areas of interest include the regulation of gene expression profile by oncogene cooperation in glial precursor cells and the identification of therapeutic targets.
Brett Stevens (Brett_Stevens@urmc.rochester.edu)
Brett's research centers around pursuing oppurtunities for acheiving selective elimination of glial cancer cells by exploiting the differences found in normal cells. An example of these differences is the regulation of the Redox/Fyn/Cbl pathway and subsequent degradation of specific receptor tyrosine kinases. The pathway appears abrogated in cancer cells and through pharmacological intervention(ex. Heat Shock Protein 90 inhibition), the pathway may serve as means of increasing sensitivity of cancer cells to chemotherapeutic agents. Other projects include the plasticity of glial tumors and response to chemotherapeutic agents, as well as work on the study of glucose metabolism in cancer cells.
Ana Tablante (Ana_Tablante@urmc.rochester.edu)
Patients with cancer in remission are living longer and long term symptoms of their cancer treatment are becoming more evident. One of the symptoms that is increasingly apparent is short term memory loss. Ana’s work focuses on effects of chemotherapy, specifically cisplatin, on oligodendrocyte precursor cells. Cisplatin appears to promote premature differentiation in this cell type. However, the mechanism for this change in cell fate is not clear and therefore she is determining the role of a possible signaling pathway, the Fyn/Cbl pathway, in this paradigm.
Christopher Folts (Christopher_Folts@urmc.rochester.edu)
Chris's current research project examines the role of glucose metabolism in the progression of glioblastoma multiforme, an intractable and lethal form of brain cancer. For cancer cells of several tumor origins, a number of studies have demonstrated a dependence on glucose metabolism and a sensitivity to glucose deprivation. Whereas most normal cells are capable of using ketogenic sources for energy production under fasting conditions, it has been shown that many types of cancer cells are unable to undergo this adaptive transition. From a therapeutic standpoint, a high fat/high protein/low carbohydrate (ketogenic) diet may be an attractive alternative to other more toxic and palliative treatments for gliomas ( i.e., surgery, chemotherapy, radiation); the physiological and molecular underpinnings, however, are not well understood. This project aims to explore the therapeutic implications of and molecular mechanisms behind ketogenic diets in the treatment of glioblastoma multiforme.
Julie Babulski (Julie_Babulski@urmc.rochester.edu) Click photo for Julie in Action
Neural development, differentiation, and activation involves Fyn, a tyrosine kinase of the Src family, and Cbl, a ubiquitin ligase that regulates the degradation of its target proteins. When cells are oxidized, Fyn is activated and, in turn, activates c-Cbl. Activated c-Cbl attaches ubiquitin to a subset of receptor tyrosine kinases and thus enhanced their degradation.
The goal of my research is to understand how diverse extracellular signals converge on the Fyn/c-Cbl pathway to modulate progenitor cell and neuronal function. The extracellular signals of particular interest will be amyloid beta peptides and LINGO (an inhibitory protein that acts in the Fyn/Cbl pathway to mediate oligodendrocyte differentiation). We hypothesize that both of these agents primarily work through modulation of Fyn/c-Cbl pathway activation. To test these hypotheses we will use both pharmacological and genetic manipulation of embryonic cortical neurons and of oligodendrocyte progenitor cells to modify Fyn and c-Cbl activity (e.g., through expression of dominant-negative proteins and expression of small inhibitory RNAs). Then we will employ immunoprecipations, phosporylation assays, and luciferase reporters to determine the extent and consequences of Fyn activation. Kinase assays will be used to quantify Fyn activity.
Technicians (top)
Frank Roth (francis_roth@urmc.rochester.edu)
Frank participates in the majority of the day to day running of the laboratory. He is the go to guy of the lab for ordering and questions pertaining to any product used in the lab. He has past training in biochemistry and hybridoma antibody production, providing valuable help and guidance in the maintenance and increased productivity of in-house generated antibodies, including A2B5, GalC, Ran-2, O4 and 5A5 (PSA-NCAM).
Kelly Leuer-Bisciotti (Kelly_Leuer-Bisciotti@urmc.rochester.edu)
Kelly’s duties include contributions to various projects for both Dr. Noble and Dr. Proschel. She is the lab animal manager, overseeing all aspects of animal research work in all three labs, including maintenance of two mouse colonies, animal ordering, accounting, and management of protocols. Kelly also acts as administrative backup for Frank Roth, as well as assist with teaching new students/techs in the lab.
Kelcie Sprentall (Kelcie_Sprentall@urmc.rochester.edu)
Kelcie is currently working on a project with Ruolan involving the effects of chemotherapy on the central nervous system. We are testing several different drugs in the hope of finding one that will help protect the good cells in the nervous system from the harmful effects of chemotherapy.
Amy Braun (amy_braun@urmc.rochester.edu)
Amy is working with Ruolan and Kelcie on a project that aims to characterize the detrimental effects of chemotherapeutic agents on mature and progenitor cells of the CNS. They are also testing the effects of a dietary treatment meant to selectively starve brain tumor cells while leaving healthy cells intact.