The Keller Laboratory at cc-TDI: 03/01/2009

Tuesday, March 31, 2009

Koichi's paper to be Highlighted in Cancer Research

We've just been informed that Koichi's paper has been selected for the Highlights section of the upcoming issue of Cancer Research. Congratulations, Koichi!

Friday, March 27, 2009

Alex's Lemonade Stand Foundation

Please see our discussion about eggs for cancer research at the Alex's Lemonade Stand Foundation blog site, http://lemonadeblog.com/2009/03/back-to-future-incredible-egg.html.

Tuesday, March 24, 2009

Bench to Bedside

We're excited to share that Charles has been appointed as a full time member of the Children's Oncology Group (COG) Soft Tissue Sarcoma Committee. This committee designs clinical and translational trials for rhabdomyosarcoma and other soft tissue sarcomas. This appointment follows other COG activities in recent years including ad hoc participation in the Soft Tissue Sarcoma Committee since 2001. Also, Charles has also been an awardee of the COG Young Investigator Award (2001) and a recipient of the COG Translational Research Award (2001-2002). The results of the latter are published as a COG report entitled, "Rhabdomyosarcomas utilize developmental, myogenic growth factors for disease advantage". This study was the foundation upon which our more recent from-the-bench-towards-bedside efforts have been focused. Our lab looks forward to being able to contribute more to clinical and translational trial design as new, molecularly-targeted drugs become available to pediatric patients.

Collaborator Andrew Brack visits GCCRI

Friend and collaborator, Dr. Andrew S. Brack, gave a terrific seminar presentation at GCCRI today. Andrew is an Assistant Professor at the Center for Regenerative Medicine at MGH, as well as a member of the Harvard Stem Cell Institute. A recent trainee of our other valued colleague, Dr. Thomas A. Rando at Stanford, Andrew has established a productive independent laboratory of his own and is a young rising star in the muscle biology field. As ever, the cross-pollination between muscle cancer biologists and muscle biologists leads to interesting conversations, novel ideas, and new outlooks on ways to treat muscle cancer. We are grateful to Andrew for making the trip to San Antonio and giving such a great seminar on satellite cell (muscle stem cell) renewal.

[ PICTURED: Andrew (left) with Koichi (right) at the Alamo ]

Thursday, March 5, 2009

Koichi and Tohru's paper accepted to The FASEB Journal

Congratulation to Koichi and Tohru as first and second author on a muscle stem cell physiology / rhabdomyosarcoma study that was accepted today to The FASEB Journal. Other lab members who co-authored this work include Bev, Suresh and Mandy - as well as lab alumnist Ali Bahadur. We are grateful for the contributions of our collaborators, especially Chris Bjornson who is a member of the laboratory of Thomas Rando and our pathologist collaborator, Brian Rubin. We are grateful, too, to the Scott Carter Foundation for sponsoring Koichi's fellowship.

[ pictured on above right: a green myotube and its blue nucleus with an adjacent pink-white muscle stem cell (satellite cell). Pictured below, Koichi (left) and Tohru (right). ]

[ Koichi & Tohru's paper is now online. ]

Wednesday, March 4, 2009

Imran awarded AMA Seed Grant

Congratulations to Imran, who has been awarded a 2009 Medical Student Seed Grant from the American Medical Association Foundation. Imran's project will investigate the role of interleukin receptors in rhabdomyosarcoma biology and therapeutic strategies. This is a great start to Imran's project as a candidate for the M.D. with Distinction in Research Program at our medical school. We're very impressed with the trajectory of this future physician-scientist.

[ pictured at right: Imran hard at work in the lab following a set of medical school exams. ]

[ update 05/22/09: Imran has been accepted to the MD with Distinction program at UTHSCSA! Congratulations, Imran! ]

You Can Participate in our Novel Therapeutics Studies !

One would like to think that tangibly better treatments for rhabdomyosarcoma, medulloblastoma and other childhood cancers can be found in a matter of years, instead of tens of years. Finding new treatments starts with research, perhaps even a new research approach to identifying effective new treatments. The Children's Cancer Therapy Development Institute focuses on finding molecules in childhood cancers that can be directly turned off or on by drugs so that the tumor stops growing. Behind our novel approach is the use of genetically-engineered mice. Our Pediatric Preclinical Testing Initiative uses mice modified from before birth so that at a certain age, and in a certain tissue, the same mutations found in a child’s cancer are activated in the mouse. These special mouse models of childhood cancer can be used to test a treatment to see whether the tumor growth and spread (metastasis) can be reversed. The specific aspect of these mice having normal immune systems is a real plus, too, because white blood cells play an important role in how tumors evolve and respond to therapy.

Our program is designed around community participation. Through the Children's Cancer Therapy Development Institute, you can contribute directly to this grass-roots initiative. Donations through small gifts or grants will assist in studying compounds that may be effective in treating such childhood cancers as alveolar rhabdomyosarcoma, embryonal rhabdomyosarcoma, or medulloblastoma (the alveolar rhabdomyosarcoma model was featured by Dr. Keller's long time collaborator and former mentor, 2007 Nobel laureate Mario Capecchi, in his Nobel Prize lecture {see 16 minutes onward}.)

For additional information regarding supporting this program please contact Charles Keller at charles@cc-tdi.org. Results obtained through these studies will be shared with the National Cancer Institute’s Cancer Therapy Evaluation Program, as well as the Children’s Oncology Group, which designs clinical trials for childhood cancer.