Cancer, Cell and Developmental Biology
Cancer, Cell and Developmental Biology - CCDB
Research related to the regulation of development, including processes dysregulated in cancer, such as control of cell cycle, cell survival and cell death; the role of innate and adaptive immunity in cancer and immunotherapy, molecular and cellular mechanisms of cancer initiation and pathogenesis; metabolic dysregulation in cancer, lymphatics in cancer progression; and design and application of mouse models of human cancer.
Faculty
Vytas Bankaitis, PhD
vytas@tamu.edu | 979.436.0757 | Office: REYNOLDS, 116
Research Interest
Molecular genetics, lipid signaling & cancer biology, cell cycle control, TOR signaling, drug discovery
Graduate Program Affiliation
- Interdisciplinary Graduate Program in Genetics
- Doctoral Program in Biochemistry & Biophysics
- Graduate Program in Chemistry
Publications
- Mousley CJ, Yuan P, Gaur NA, et al. A sterol-binding protein integrates endosomal lipid metabolism with TOR signaling and nitrogen sensing. 2012;148(4):702-715. doi:10.1016/j.cell.2011.12.026
- Lee AY, St Onge RP, Proctor MJ, et al. Mapping the cellular response to small molecules using chemogenomic fitness signatures. [published correction appears in Science. 2014 May 23;344(6186):1255771]. Science. 2014;344(6180):208-211. doi:10.1126/science.1250217
- Huang J, Mousley CJ, Dacquay L, et al. A Lipid Transfer Protein Signaling Axis Exerts Dual Control of Cell-Cycle and Membrane Trafficking Systems. Dev Cell. 2018;44(3):378-391.e5. doi:10.1016/j.devcel.2017.12.026
Kayla Bayless, PhD
kaylajb@tamu.edu | 979.436.0763 | Office: MREB-II, 4412
Research Interest
Understanding the biochemical role of cytoskeletal and adapter proteins in new blood vessel growth.
Graduate Program Affiliation
Publications
- Duran CL, Howell DW, Dave JM, et al. Molecular Regulation of Sprouting Angiogenesis. Compr Physiol. 2017;8(1):153-235. Published 2017 Dec 12. doi:10.1002/cphy.c160048
- Dave JM, Abbey CA, Duran CL, Seo H, Johnson GA, Bayless KJ. Hic-5 mediates the initiation of endothelial sprouting by regulating a key surface metalloproteinase. J Cell Sci. 2016;129(4):743-756. doi:10.1242/jcs.170571
- Kwak HI, Kang H, Dave JM, et al. Calpain-mediated vimentin cleavage occurs upstream of MT1-MMP membrane translocation to facilitate endothelial sprout initiation. Angiogenesis. 2012;15(2):287-303. doi:10.1007/s10456-012-9262-4
Sarah Bondos, PhD
bondos@tamu.edu | 979.436.0807 | Office: MREB-II, 4417
Research Interest
Hox protein regulation in developmental biology
Graduate Program Affiliation
Publications
- Liu Y, Huang A, Booth RM, et al. Evolution of the activation domain in a Hox transcription factor. Int J Dev Biol. 2018;62(11-12):745-753. doi:10.1387/ijdb.180151sb
- Dunker AK, Bondos SE, Huang F, Oldfield CJ. Intrinsically disordered proteins and multicellular organisms. Semin Cell Dev Biol. 2015;37:44-55. doi:10.1016/j.semcdb.2014.09.025
- Bondos SE, Swint-Kruse L, Matthews KS. Flexibility and Disorder in Gene Regulation: LacI/GalR and Hox Proteins. J Biol Chem. 2015;290(41):24669-24677. doi:10.1074/jbc.R115.685032
Sanjukta Chakraborty, PhD
schakraborty@tamu.edu | 979.436.0697 | Office: MREB-II, 2416
Research Interest
Tumor lymphatic interactions in progression of lymph node metastasis
Graduate Program Affiliation
Publications
- Kumaravel S, Singh S, Roy S, et al. CXCL11-CXCR3 Axis Mediates Tumor Lymphatic Cross Talk and Inflammation-Induced Tumor, Promoting Pathways in Head and Neck Cancers. Am J Pathol. 2020;190(4):900-915. doi:10.1016/j.ajpath.2019.12.004
- Roy S, Glaser S, Chakraborty S. Inflammation and Progression of Cholangiocarcinoma: Role of Angiogenic and Lymphangiogenic Mechanisms. Front Med (Lausanne). 2019;6:293. Published 2019 Dec 18. doi:10.3389/fmed.2019.00293
- Chakraborty S, Mohiyuddin SM, Gopinath KS, Kumar A. Involvement of TSC Genes and Differential Expression of Other Members of the mTOR Signaling Pathway in Oral Squamous Cell Carcinoma. BMC Cancer. 2008;8:163. Published 2008 Jun 6. doi:10.1186/1471-2407-8-163
Jeffrey Cirillo, PhD
jdcirillo@tamu.edu | 979.436.0343 | Office: MREB-II, 3350
Research Interest
Therapeutic strategies and epigenetic analyses
Graduate Program Affiliation
Publications
- Gunasekera RS, Galbadage T, Ayala-Orozco C, et al. Molecular Nanomachines Can Destroy Tissue or Kill Multicellular Eukaryotes. ACS Appl Mater Interfaces. 2020;12(12):13657-13670. doi:10.1021/acsami.9b22595
- DiNardo AR, Rajapakshe K, Nishiguchi T, et al. DNA hypermethylation during tuberculosis dampens host immune responsiveness. J Clin Invest. 2020;130(6):3113-3123. doi:10.1172/JCI134622
- Fan X, Xu J, Files M, et al. Dual activity of niclosamide to suppress replication of integrated HIV-1 and Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Beijing). Tuberculosis (Edinb). 2019;116S:S28-S33. doi:10.1016/j.tube.2019.04.008
Roderick Dashwood, PhD
rdashwood@tamu.edu | 713.677.7806 | Office: ALKEK
Research Interest
Cancer epigenetics/prevention, from cell-based assays and preclinical models to human translation.
Graduate Program Affiliation
Publications
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Rajendran P, Johnson G, Li L, et al. Acetylation of CCAR2 Establishes a BET/BRD9 Acetyl Switch in Response to Combined Deacetylase and Bromodomain Inhibition. Cancer Res. 2019;79(5):918-927. doi:10.1158/0008-5472.CAN-18-2003
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Rajendran P, Delage B, Dashwood WM, et al. Histone deacetylase turnover and recovery in sulforaphane-treated colon cancer cells: competing actions of 14-3-3 and Pin1 in HDAC3/SMRT corepressor complex dissociation/reassembly. Mol Cancer. 2011;10:68. Published 2011 May 30. doi:10.1186/1476-4598-10-68
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Myzak MC, Karplus PA, Chung FL, Dashwood RH. A novel mechanism of chemoprotection by sulforaphane: inhibition of histone deacetylase. Cancer Res. 2004;64(16):5767-5774. doi:10.1158/0008-5472.CAN-04-1326
Peter Davies, MD, PhD
pdavies@tamu.edu | 713.677.7473 | Office: ALKEK, 900
Research Interest
Drug discovery research, snake venom research
Graduate Program Affiliation
Publications
- Vijay GV, Zhao N, Den Hollander P, et al. GSK3β regulates epithelial-mesenchymal transition and cancer stem cell properties in triple-negative breast cancer. Breast Cancer Res. 2019;21(1):37. Published 2019 Mar 7. doi:10.1186/s13058-019-1125-0
Robin Fuchs-Young, PhD
fuchs-young@tamu.edu | 512.699.3704 | Office: MREB-II, 4410
Research Interest
Mechanisms of cancer susceptibility
Graduate Program Affiliation
- Medical Science PhD Program
- Interdisciplinary Graduate Program in Genetics
- Texas A&M University Interdisciplinary Faculty of Toxicology
- Master of Biotechnology Program
Publications
- Gunaratna RT, Santos A, Luo L, et al. Dynamic role of the codon 72 p53 single-nucleotide polymorphism in mammary tumorigenesis in a humanized mouse model. 2019;38(18):3535-3550. doi:10.1038/s41388-018-0630-4
Shannon Glaser, PhD
sglaser@tamu.edu | 979.436.9260 | Office: MREB-II, 2342
Research Interest
Biliary cancer, hepatobiliary cancer, cholangiocarcinoma
Graduate Program Affiliation
Publications
- Martínez AK, Jensen K, Hall C, et al. Nicotine Promotes Cholangiocarcinoma Growth in Xenograft Mice. Am J Pathol. 2017;187(5):1093-1105. doi:10.1016/j.ajpath.2017.01.011
- Hall C, Ehrlich L, Venter J, et al. Inhibition of the Apelin/Apelin Receptor Axis Decreases Cholangiocarcinoma Growth. Cancer Lett. 2017;386:179-188. doi:10.1016/j.canlet.2016.11.025
- Ehrlich L, Hall C, Venter J, et al. miR-24 Inhibition Increases Menin Expression and Decreases Cholangiocarcinoma Proliferation. Am J Pathol. 2017;187(3):570-580. doi:10.1016/j.ajpath.2016.10.021
Carl Gregory, PhD
cgregory@tamu.edu | 979.436.9643 | Office: MREB-II, 4414
Research Interest
Musculoskeletal cancer, bone involvement
Graduate Program Affiliation
Publications
- McNeill EP, Reese RW, Tondon A, et al. Three-dimensional in vitro modeling of malignant bone disease recapitulates experimentally accessible mechanisms of osteoinhibition. Cell Death Dis. 2018;9(12):1161. Published 2018 Nov 26. doi:10.1038/s41419-018-1203-8
- Krause U, Ryan DM, Clough BH, Gregory CA. An unexpected role for a Wnt-inhibitor: Dickkopf-1 triggers a novel cancer survival mechanism through modulation of aldehyde-dehydrogenase-1 activity. Cell Death Dis. 2014;5(2):e1093. Published 2014 Feb 27. doi:10.1038/cddis.2014.67
- Gunn WG, Krause U, Lee N, Gregory CA. Pharmaceutical inhibition of glycogen synthase kinase-3β reduces multiple myeloma-induced bone disease in a novel murine plasmacytoma xenograft model. 2011;117(5):1641-1651. doi:10.1182/blood-2010-09-308171
Yun Huang, PhD
yun.huang@tamu.edu | 713.677.7484
Research Interest
Cancer epigenetics and developmental epigenetics
Graduate Program Affiliation
Publications
- Zang S, Li J, Yang H, et al. Mutations in 5-methylcytosine oxidase TET2 and RhoA cooperatively disrupt T cell homeostasis. J Clin Invest. 2017;127(8):2998-3012. doi:10.1172/JCI92026
- Guo L, Li J, Zeng H, et al. A combination strategy targeting enhancer plasticity exerts synergistic lethality against BETi-resistant leukemia cells. Nat Commun. 2020;11(1):740. Published 2020 Feb 6. doi:10.1038/s41467-020-14604-6
- Gu T, Lin X, Cullen SM, et al. DNMT3A and TET1 cooperate to regulate promoter epigenetic landscapes in mouse embryonic stem cells. Genome Biol. 2018;19(1):88. Published 2018 Jul 12. doi:10.1186/s13059-018-1464-7
Jason Karpac, PhD
karpac@tamu.edu | 975.436.0767 | Office: MREB-II, 4342
Research Interest
Exploring cell signaling, integrative physiology, and oncogenic signaling using drosophila
Graduate Program Affiliation
- Medical Science PhD Program
- Interdisciplinary Graduate Program in Genetics
- Biomedical Sciences Graduate Program
Publications
- Molaei M, Vandehoef C, Karpac J. NF-κB Shapes Metabolic Adaptation by Attenuating Foxo-Mediated Lipolysis in Drosophila. Dev Cell. 2019;49(5):802-810.e6. doi:10.1016/j.devcel.2019.04.009
- Vandehoef C, Molaei M, Karpac J. Dietary Adaptation of Microbiota in Drosophila Requires NF-κB-Dependent Control of the Translational Regulator 4E-BP. Cell Rep. 2020;31(10):107736. doi:10.1016/j.celrep.2020.107736
- Fuentes NR, Mlih M, Barhoumi R, et al. Long-Chain n-3 Fatty Acids Attenuate Oncogenic KRas-Driven Proliferation by Altering Plasma Membrane Nanoscale Proteolipid Composition. Cancer Res. 2018;78(14):3899-3912. doi:10.1158/0008-5472.CAN-18-0324
Fei Liu, PhD
fliu@tamu.edu | 979.436.9642 | Office: REYNOLDS, 242B
Research Interest
Cancer nanomedicine, adverse effects of radiotherapy
Graduate Program Affiliation
Publications
- Zhao Q, Hai B, Zhang X, Xu J, Koehler B, Liu F. Biomimetic nanovesicles made from iPS cell-derived mesenchymal stem cells for targeted therapy of triple-negative breast cancer. 2020;24:102146. doi:10.1016/j.nano.2019.102146
- Hai B, Zhao Q, Deveau MA, Liu F. Delivery of Sonic Hedgehog Gene Repressed Irradiation-induced Cellular Senescence in Salivary Glands by Promoting DNA Repair and Reducing Oxidative Stress. 2018;8(4):1159-1167. Published 2018 Jan 13. doi:10.7150/thno.23373
- Hai B, Qin L, Yang Z, et al. Transient activation of hedgehog pathway rescued irradiation-induced hyposalivation by preserving salivary stem/progenitor cells and parasympathetic innervation. Clin Cancer Res. 2014;20(1):140-150. doi:10.1158/1078-0432.CCR-13-1434
Steve Maxwell, PhD
s-maxwell@tamu.edu | 979.436.0804 | Office: MREB II, 4418
Research Interest
Mechanisms of drug resistance in lymphoma
Graduate Program Affiliation
Publications
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Maxwell SA, Mousavi-Fard S. Non-Hodgkin's B-cell lymphoma: advances in molecular strategies targeting drug resistance. Exp Biol Med (Maywood). 2013;238(9):971-990. doi:10.1177/1535370213498985
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Maxwell SA, Cherry EM, Bayless KJ. Akt, 14-3-3ζ, and vimentin mediate a drug-resistant invasive phenotype in diffuse large B-cell lymphoma. Leuk Lymphoma. 2011;52(5):849-864. doi:10.3109/10428194.2010.551793
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Maxwell SA, Li Z, Jaye D, Ballard S, Ferrell J, Fu H. 14-3-3zeta mediates resistance of diffuse large B cell lymphoma to an anthracycline-based chemotherapeutic regimen [published correction appears in J Biol Chem. 2010 Dec 3;285(49):38740. Jaya, David [corrected to Jaye, David]]. J Biol Chem. 2009;284(33):22379-22389. doi:10.1074/jbc.M109.022418
Rajesh Miranda, PhD
rmiranda@tamu.edu | 979.436.0332 | Office: MREB
Research Interest
Fetal and perinatal development, brain, placenta, opioids, alcohol
Graduate Program Affiliation
- Medical Science PhD Program
- Interdisciplinary Graduate Program in Genetics
- Texas A&M University Institute for Neuroscience
- Texas A&M University Interdisciplinary Faculty of Toxicology
- Master of Biotechnology Program
Publications
- Tseng AM, Mahnke AH, Wells AB, et al. Maternal circulating miRNAs that predict infant FASD outcomes influence placental maturation. Life Sci Alliance. 2019;2(2):e201800252. Published 2019 Mar 4. doi:10.26508/lsa.201800252
Xu Peng, MD, PhD
xp23@tamu.edu | 979.436.9265 | Office: MREB-II, 3417
Research Interest
Signal transduction and epigenetic regulators in cardiovascular and lymphatic development
Graduate Program Affiliation
Publications
- Jin Y, Liu Y, Lin Q, et al. Deletion of Cdc42 enhances ADAM17-mediated vascular endothelial growth factor receptor 2 shedding and impairs vascular endothelial cell survival and vasculogenesis. Mol Cell Biol. 2013;33(21):4181-4197. doi:10.1128/MCB.00650-13
- Liu Y, Jin Y, Li J, et al. Inactivation of Cdc42 in neural crest cells causes craniofacial and cardiovascular morphogenesis defects. Dev Biol. 2013;383(2):239-252. doi:10.1016/j.ydbio.2013.09.013
- Li J, Liu Y, Jin Y, et al. Essential role of Cdc42 in cardiomyocyte proliferation and cell-cell adhesion during heart development. Dev Biol. 2017;421(2):271-283. doi:10.1016/j.ydbio.2016.12.012
Dave Reiner, PhD
dreiner@tamu.edu | 713.677.7416 | Office: ALKEK, 916
Research Interest
Signal transduction, proto-oncogenes, GTPases, Ras, RalGEF, Ral, Rheb, fate patterning, fidelity
Graduate Program Affiliation
Publications
- Shin H, Kaplan REW, Duong T, Fakieh R, Reiner DJ. Ral Signals through a MAP4 Kinase-p38 MAP Kinase Cascade in C. elegans Cell Fate Patterning. Cell Rep. 2018;24(10):2669-2681.e5. doi:10.1016/j.celrep.2018.08.011
- Duong T, Rasmussen NR, Ballato E, Mote FS, Reiner DJ. The Rheb-TORC1 signaling axis functions as a developmental checkpoint. 2020;147(5):dev181727. Published 2020 Mar 2. doi:10.1242/dev.181727
- Rasmussen NR, Dickinson DJ, Reiner DJ. Ras-Dependent Cell Fate Decisions Are Reinforced by the RAP-1 Small GTPase in Caenorhabditis Elegans. 2018;210(4):1339-1354. doi:10.1534/genetics.118.301601
Irtisha Singh, PhD
isingh@tamu.edu | 646.574.2080 | Office: MREB-II
Research Interest
RNA processing, gene regulation, epigenetics
Graduate Program Affiliation
- Medical Science PhD Program
- Interdisciplinary Graduate Program in Genetics
- Biomedical Engineering Graduate Program
Publications
- Lee SH, Singh I, Tisdale S, Abdel-Wahab O, Leslie CS, Mayr C. Widespread intronic polyadenylation inactivates tumour suppressor genes in leukaemia. Nature. 2018;561(7721):127-131. doi:10.1038/s41586-018-0465-8
- Mack SC, Singh I, Wang X, et al. Chromatin landscapes reveal developmentally encoded transcriptional states that define human glioblastoma. J Exp Med. 2019;216(5):1071-1090. doi:10.1084/jem.20190196
- Sin-Chan P, Mumal I, Suwal T, et al. A C19MC-LIN28A-MYCN Oncogenic Circuit Driven by Hijacked Super-enhancers Is a Distinct Therapeutic Vulnerability in ETMRs: A Lethal Brain Tumor. Cancer Cell. 2019;36(1):51-67.e7. doi:10.1016/j.ccell.2019.06.002
Raquel Sitcheran, PhD
sitcheran@tamu.edu | 979.436.0749 | Office: MREB-II, 4348
Research Interest
Investigating NF-κB proteins in mitochondrial dysfunction, metabolism and cancer progression.
Graduate Program Affiliation
- Medical Science PhD Program
- Interdisciplinary Graduate Program in Genetics
- Texas A&M University Institute for Neuroscience
Publications
- Jung JU, Ravi S, Lee DW, et al. NIK/MAP3K14 Regulates Mitochondrial Dynamics and Trafficking to Promote Cell Invasion. Curr Biol. 2016;26(24):3288-3302. doi:10.1016/j.cub.2016.10.009
- Duran CL, Lee DW, Jung JU, et al. NIK regulates MT1-MMP activity and promotes glioma cell invasion independently of the canonical NF-κB pathway. 2016;5(6):e231. Published 2016 Jun 6. doi:10.1038/oncsis.2016.39
- Cherry EM, Lee DW, Jung JU, Sitcheran R. Tumor necrosis factor-like weak inducer of apoptosis (TWEAK) promotes glioma cell invasion through induction of NF-κB-inducing kinase (NIK) and noncanonical NF-κB signaling. Mol Cancer. 2015;14(1):9. Published 2015 Jan 27. doi:10.1186/s12943-014-0273-1
Jim Song, PhD
jus35@tamu.edu | 979.436.0633
Research Interest
Cancer immunotherapy
Graduate Program Affiliation
Publications
- Lei F, Haque M, Sandhu P, et al. Development and characterization of naive single-type tumor antigen-specific CD8+ T lymphocytes from murine pluripotent stem cells. 2017;6(7):e1334027. Published 2017 May 30. doi:10.1080/2162402X.2017.1334027
David Threadgill, PhD
dwt@tamu.edu | 979.436.0850 | Office: REYN 428
Research Interest
EGFR, Colon Cancer, Environmental Toxicants, Diet, Stem Cells
Graduate Program Affiliation
- Interdisciplinary Graduate Program in Genetics
- Texas A&M University Interdisciplinary Faculty of Toxicology
- Doctoral Program in Biochemistry & Biophysics
- Nutrition & Food Science Graduate Program
Publications
- Bautz DJ, Sherpa AT, Threadgill DW. Prophylactic vaccination targeting ERBB3 decreases polyp burden in a mouse model of human colorectal cancer. Oncoimmunology. 2016 Dec 7;6(1):e1255395. doi: 10.1080/2162402X.2016.1255395. PMID: 28197371; PMCID: PMC5283616.
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Garbutt TA, Konneker TI, Konganti K, Hillhouse AE, Swift-Haire F, Jones A, Phelps D, Aylor DL, Threadgill DW. Permissiveness to form pluripotent stem cells may be an evolutionarily derived characteristic in Mus musculus. Sci Rep. 2018 Oct 2;8(1):14706. doi: 10.1038/s41598-018-32116-8. PMID: 30279419; PMCID: PMC6168588.
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Barrington WT, Wulfridge P, Wells AE, Rojas CM, Howe SYF, Perry A, Hua K, Pellizzon MA, Hansen KD, Voy BH, Bennett BJ, Pomp D, Feinberg AP, Threadgill DW. Improving Metabolic Health Through Precision Dietetics in Mice. Genetics. 2018 Jan;208(1):399-417. doi: 10.1534/genetics.117.300536. Epub 2017 Nov 20. PMID: 29158425; PMCID: PMC5753872.
Phillip West, PhD
awest@tamu.edu | 979.436.0870 | Office: MREB, 3012
Research Interest
Mitochondrial dysfunction and immune rewiring in cancer
Graduate Program Affiliation
Publications
- Wu Z, Oeck S, West AP, et al. Mitochondrial DNA Stress Signalling Protects the Nuclear Genome. Nat Metab. 2019;1(12):1209-1218. doi:10.1038/s42255-019-0150-8
- Araujo LF, Siena ADD, Plaça JR, et al. Mitochondrial transcription factor A (TFAM) shapes metabolic and invasion gene signatures in melanoma. Sci Rep. 2018;8(1):14190. Published 2018 Sep 21. doi:10.1038/s41598-018-31170-6
Yi Xu,
yi-xu1@tamu.edu | 713.677.7570 | Office: ALKEK
Research Interest
Understanding the connection between gut microbes and colorectal cancer
Graduate Program Affiliation
Publications
- Kumar R, Herold JL, Taylor J, Xu J, Xu Y. Variations among Streptococcus gallolyticus subsp. gallolyticus strains in connection with colorectal cancer. Sci Rep. 2018;8(1):1514. Published 2018 Jan 24. doi:10.1038/s41598-018-19941-7
- Kumar R, Herold JL, Schady D, et al. Streptococcus gallolyticus subsp. gallolyticus promotes colorectal tumor development. PLoS Pathog. 2017;13(7):e1006440. Published 2017 Jul 13. doi:10.1371/journal.ppat.1006440
Yubin Zhou, MD, PhD
yubinzhou@tamu.edu | 713.677.7483 | Office: ALKEK, 925
Research Interest
Calcium signaling, ion channels, oncogenic signaling pathways, and epigenetics
Graduate Program Affiliation
Publications
- Jing J, He L, Sun A, et al. Proteomic mapping of ER-PM junctions identifies STIMATE as a regulator of Ca²⁺ influx. Nat Cell Biol. 2015;17(10):1339-1347. doi:10.1038/ncb3234
- Ma G, He L, Liu S, et al. Optogenetic engineering to probe the molecular choreography of STIM1-mediated cell signaling. Nat Commun. 2020;11(1):1039. Published 2020 Feb 25. doi:10.1038/s41467-020-14841-9
- Tan P, Ye Y, He L, et al. TRIM59 promotes breast cancer motility by suppressing p62-selective autophagic degradation of PDCD10. PLoS Biol. 2018;16(11):e3000051. Published 2018 Nov 8. doi:10.1371/journal.pbio.3000051
Keywords: gene regulation, developmental genetics, bioinformatics, microbial and viral genetics, cancer genetics, epigenetics, polymorphism, multi genetic inheritance, mutations