Journal of Cancer Science and Clinical Oncology

Prof. Wei Zhang obtained his Ph.D degree in University of Leeds, U.K. in 2008 and then he worked at the Institute of Advanced Technology in University of Surrey, U.K. He joined Dalian University of Technology, China, as an Associate Professor in 2011. In 2017, he was promoted to professorship. Prof. Zhang's current research interests include hyperthermia therapy of cancer, hydrogel for drug delivery, mechanics of tissue and cell.He is the Associate Editor of Beni-Suef University Journal of Basic and Applied Sciences, Editor of Molecular & Cellular Biomechanics, Magnetochemistry. He is the principal investigator (PI) of one project and one sub-project of National Key Researand Development Project of China. He is the PI of two projects and co-PI of one project of National Natural Science Foundation of China. He is also the PI of 14 projects of Ministry of  Science and Technology of China, Department of Education of China and Liaoning Provincial  Department of Education. As PI, he has been in charge of research funding of over 12 million RMB

Research: Biomechanical modeling, Patient safety systems, or medical device engineering

Research: Pain management, Cancer pain, Palliative medicine, Hospice, Symptom control, Supportive cancer care, Cancer related fatigue, Cancer anorexia and weight loss, Lung cancer, Paraproteinemias and amyloidosis

Dr. Suzanne M. Miller is Professor and Director of the Psychosocial and Behavioral Medicine Department in the Cancer Prevention and Control Program at Fox Chase Cancer Center/Temple Health.  She is also an Adjunct Professor at the University of Pennsylvania and Temple University.  Her funded research is focused at the interface of psychology and oncology, particularly with a view to applying personalized biobehavioral and health communication principles to bridge the gap between the availability of groundbreaking cancer prevention and control technologies and the populations they are meant to serve. Dr. Miller’s recent books include 1) Individuals, Families & the New Era of Genetics: Biopsychosocial Perspectives (Norton Publications 2006); and 2) Handbook of Cancer Control and Behavioral Science: A Resource for Researchers, Practitioners, and Policy Makers (APA Publications, 2008). She was also author and PI of the RWJ-funded A Practical Guide to Informed Consent With Tools for Providing Simple and Effective Informed Consent in Everyday Clinical Practice. Dr. Miller was recently awarded the Outstanding Senior Cancer Scientist Award, and the Tracy Orleans Distinguished Society Award, from the Society of Behavioral Medicine. She was also awarded the Partners in Research Award from the National Cancer Institute’s Cancer Information Service, and the Cancer Control Award from the American Cancer Society.  

Research: Markus Müschen is interested in basic aspects of Cancer Biology and Immunology including signal transduction from oncogenes and mechanisms of self-renewal and cellular quiescence. He developed his primary research interest both in the field of immunology (B cell development) and oncology (oncogenes in leukemia). He started his independent laboratory in 2001 in Cologne, Germany and moved with his group to Los Angeles in 2006 to serve as the Director of the Leukemia Research Program at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles and as the Program Leader of the Hematological Malignancies Program of the USC Norris Cancer Center. He was recently awarded a Cancer Research UK Chair of Molecular Pathology and the 2012 Sir Alexander Haddow Professorship of The Institute of Cancer Research (ICR), London, UK. He is currently a Scholar of the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society and a Senior Investigator of the Wellcome Trust, UK . In 2010, Markus Müschen joined the University of California San Francisco (UCSF) as full professor and serves as the Co-Leader of the Hematological Malignancies Program at the UCSF Helen-Diller-Family Comprehensive Cancer Center. His research involves multi-disciplinary approaches (Immunology, hematology/oncology, signal transduction, computational biology) and has a genuine translational focus towards development of pathway-specific drug-design. 

Dr. Francis joined the division in 2005 after having previously held faculty appointments at the National Institutes of Health, The Medical College of Georgia and the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences (USUHS). While at the USUHS, he directed the Pediatric Endocrine Fellowship Program for 10 years and trained more than 15 fellows.Dr. Francis is an elected member of the Society for Pediatric Research, The Endocrine Society, the Pediatric Endocrine Society, the American Thyroid Association, the Children's Oncology Group and a fellow of the American Academy of Pediatrics. He is chair of the Taskforce for Guideline Development for Management of Children with Thyroid Cancer of the American Thyroid Association and previously served on the Guidelines committee for management of medullary thyroid cancer of the American Thyroid Association.

Research: Diabetes Thyroid

Dr. Xiaoyang Qi is presently working as an Associate Director and Associate Professor of Medicine in Division of Hematology-Oncology in the Department of Internal Medicine at University of Cincinnati, United States. He is also working as Associate Professor in Pediatrics and Biomedical Engineering. He is also working as Scientific Advisory Board in Bexion Pharmaceuticals, USA, and Nan Yun Sci & Tech Co., P.R. China. He is also a one of the member in many International Committees. More than 20 patents filed in his name. He has more than 25 grants and contracts for his research related peer reviewed projects. He has published more than 50 publications in peer-review journals and almost 65 abstracts.

Research: His research interests includes Anit-cancer Drug Development Theragnostic Drug and Biomarker Discovery and Development Translational Research Hematology Oncology

Research: Breast Cancer, Endocrinology, Hormonal and Environmental Carcinogenesis, Hormone Breast Cancer Prevention, Molecular and Cell Biology, Pathology, Prognostic Indicators, Invasion and Metastasis.  

Dr. Michael K. Gibson was recruited by Dr. Neal Meropol to join the Seidman Cancer Center as a translational investigator in aero-digestive malignancies, with a primary focus on cancers of the head and neck. Along with his colleagues in radiation oncology and head and neck surgery, his goal is to integrate the multi-disciplinary pre-clinical research and clinical trials programs in head and neck cancer at the Seidman. In this role, he leads or co-leads all clinical trials within this domain, manages the clinical trials mechanism through the Cancer Center’s Clinical Research Services and treats patients at the Seidman. After obtaining his MD from Johns Hopkins, he completed an Osler Medical Residency and Medical Oncology Fellowship at Johns Hopkins Hospital while concurrently earning a PhD in Clinical Investigation from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. He leads local and national therapeutic trials for aero-digestive cancers, all with translational laboratory components. His laboratory experiences at the NCI and NIEHS led to a number of publications regarding hormone receptor biology and DNA repair, which led to his translational research focus. His national presence in the field of aero-digestive cancers includes membership in the Esophageal Cancer Committee of ECOG (through which he was the PI on E2205) and the NCI Esophago-Gastric Task Force as well as membership in the NSABP Industry Trials Group. His commitment to the safety and regulation of clinical investigation is supported by his membership in the NCI Central IRB, Chairmanship of the Hillman Cancer Center (HCC) Data, Safety and Monitoring Committee, the HCC Protocol Review Committee, the University of PIttsburgh IRB and the HCC Clinical Research Oversight Committee. The overall goals of his research efforts are to bring novel therapeutics to the treatment of aero-digestive cancers based on rational pre-clinical investigation and in the setting of a patient focus.

Research: Aerodigestive cancer Esophageal cancer Head & neck cancers Thyroid cancer Translational therapeutics

Dr. Peter Parker was trained as an undergraduate in Biochemistry (BA) at Oxford and then as a post-graduate under Professor Sir Philip Randle in Clinical Biochemistry (D.Phil) at Oxford. He subsequently won an MRC Post-Doctoral Fellowship to work with Professor Sir Philip Cohen in Dundee and following this started working in the area of oncology as an ICRF (now CRUK) Fellow with Professor Mike Waterfield in London. Professor Parker has run an independent cancer research group since 1986 publishing over 300 primary research articles and reviews in the area of cancer and signal transduction. Dr. Peter Parker has been recognised for his research contributions having been elected to the European Molecular Biology Organisation in 1995, to the Academy of Medical Sciences in 2000, he was awarded the Morton Prize in 2004 and elected to the Royal Society in 2006 and the EACS in 2011. Peter is Head of the Division of Cancer Studies at King’s College London, Deputy Director and R&D lead for the KHP Integrated Cancer Centre and is a Principal Scientist at the London Research Institute. Dr. Peter Parker has ongoing research activities in oncology with expertise in signal transduction, molecular cell biology, biomarker research and drug discovery. Peter Parker has co-founded two biotechnology companies (co-founder of Piramed and of Symansis) and retains active links to biotech and pharma in the pursuit of delivering new interventions in the clinic.

Research: Protein kinases Protein kinase C Signal transduction Cancer cell biology

Dr. Ming Tan holds M.D. and Ph.D. degrees and serves as an Associate Professor, Chief of Center for Cell Death and Metabolism, and an Endowed Scholar at Mitchell Cancer Institute, University of South Alabama, Mobile, Ala, USA. Upon earning his Ph.D. degree in cancer biology from the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Tex, USA, in 2000, Tan continued his research on the mechanisms of oncogene-induced cancer progression and therapeutic resistance as a postdoctoral fellow. He joined the faculty at Mitchell Cancer Institute at the University of South Alabama in 2007, where he conducted research on metabolism and cancer, mechanism of cancer cell therapeutic resistance, invasion and metastasis, and microRNA in cancer development.

Research: - Metabolism and cancer  - MicroRNA and cancer  - Cancer metastasis  - Therapeutic resistance  - Targeted cancer therapy

Research: Major research interests are image guidance and assessment for radiation therapy, MR guided high intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) surgery, and pulsed HIFU enhancement of drug delivery for gene therapy and chemotherapy in combination with radiotherapy. 

Dr Qifeng Yang is a professor and vice chairman in the Department of Breast Surgery and holds the director of Pathology Tissue Bank of Qilu Hospital, Shandong University, China. He also serves as the adjunct associate professor at Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey/Robert Wood Johnson Medical School, USA. Moreover, he has joint appointments in the Department of Oncology and the Institute of Molecular Medicine and Genetics. Dr. Yang is not only a surgeon but also a pathologist in the field of breast disease. His research focuses on understanding the molecular basis of breast cancer development and progression, identifying novel diagnostic, predictive and prognostic markers towards breast cancer early detection, chemoprevention and individual treatment.

Research: Oncogene and Tumor suppressor gene of breast cancer Pathology and clinical surgery of breast cancer Identifying novel diagnostic, predictive and prognostic markers towards cancer early detection, chemoprevention and individual treatment

Research: The major focus of our research program is to understand the molecular basis of cell signaling on cellular as well as organismal levels.  In metazoan each individual cell is related to others by the interplay of numerous signaling pathways.  Dyregulation of signaling pathways often affects cellular homeostasis leading to different pathological conditions including cancers.  Ongoing projects include: Regulation of RKIP protein interaction network RKIP regulation as a potential for tumor suppression  

Assistant Professor Zeina Ghorab obtained her Medical Degree from Tichreen University in Lattakia, Syria. She completed her residency training in anatomic and clinical pathology at Monmouth Medical Centre, an affiliate of Hahnemann University in Long Branch, New Jersey. Dr. Ghorab completed her Fellowships in Surgical Pathology, Cytopathology and Hematopathology at Jackson Memorial Medical Center, University of Miami in Miami, Florida. Dr. Ghorab holds American Board Certificates in Anatomic/Clinical Pathology, Cytopathology and hematopathology. In 2003 she accepted an appointment as Assistant Professor at the University of Miami/Jackson Memorial Hospital. Dr. Ghorab joined the Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathobiology at the University of Toronto in 2004. She is a pathologist specializing in hematopathology and cytopathology. She is the Director of Cytopathology and Immunohistochemistry in the Department of Pathology at Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre.

Research: Dr. Ghorab's research involves the application of immunohistochemistry studies as diagnostic and prognostic tool in gynecologic neoplasia, lymphomas and cytology material with special interest in targeted therapy determinants.

Nagendra Prasad is specialized in cancer cell biology with an in-depth experience in drug discovery and translational research. He started his training as a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine and later obtained a PhD in Medicine from Memorial University of Newfoundland, Canada. He moved then to Paris, France for post-doctoral research before arriving in the United States. His professional experience includes cancer and diabetes drug discovery and development research in Parke-Davis/Pfizer Research Labs, Ann Arbor, MI. As a faculty member at Purdue University, he established an independent research program on signaling pathways linking breast cancer and obesity/high fat diet. His main focus of research is inositol phosphatases and their role in cell adhesion and growth factor signaling pathways. Currently he is the Director of a translational research facility at the Indiana University Simon Cancer Center, Indiana University School of Medicine (Indianapolis, IN) where he focuses on transforming cutting edge basic science discoveries in cancer genetics and signaling mechanisms into useful clinical practices to benefit cancer patients.

Research: Main research interests are in the field of colorectal cancers and neuroendocrine tumors of the gastrointestinal tract.

Dr.Yang is an Assistant Professor at Fox Chase Cancer Center, where she takes charge of the Tissue Research Service at the Biosample Repository Core Facility. She is a leading expert in the field of immunohistochemistry (IHC) and quantitative analysis. She has applied IHC technology to study the molecular alterations of known and novel signaling pathways that regulate embryogenesis, organ morphogenesis and tumorigenesis. Dr. Yang leads the automatic quantitative analysis (AQUA) for immunohistochemistry and immunofluorescence assays for biomarker research.

Research: Cancer Biology Biomarkers Multi-drug resistance Cancer therapeutics Developmental biology    

Research: - Discovery and validation of novel biomarkers associated with tumor progression, metastasis, therapeutic response, and chemoprevention  - Identification and characterization of important roles of non-coding RNA (microRNAs) in human cancer  - Developing novel normalization methods for microarray analysis

Dr. Venstrom is the Krishnamurthi Endowed Chair in Hematologic Malignancies in the Department of Medicine, Division of Hematology/Oncology at the University of California, San Francisco. Dr. Venstrom is a physician-scientist trained in oncology and human immunology. His laboratory focuses on translating our basic knowledge of innate immunity to develop novel therapeutics for patients with cancer. Current projects in the Venstrom laboratory aim to determine the influence of natural killer (NK) immune cells in anti-tumor immunity. Dr. Venstrom completed clinical and post-graduate research training at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center. He received his graduate medical training at Johns Hopkins Hospital, his medical degree from Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, and additional research training at the National Institutes of Health. He has published articles in the New England Journal of Medicine, Clinical Cancer Research, the Journal of Clinical Investigation, and others. He is a recipient of numerous awards and honors, including Phi Beta Kappa, Alpha Omega Alpha, a Research Scholar Award from the American Cancer Society, a Young Investigator Award from the Cancer and Leukemia Group B Foundation and a Merit Award from the American Society of Clinical Oncology.

Dr. Sabira Khatun is presently working as professor in the School of Computer and Communication Engineering at University Malaysia Perlis, Malaysia. She has over 20 years of research and teaching experience in various universities including Khulna University, Bangladesh as lecturer; followed by University Putra Malaysia, Malaysia as senior lecturer and associate professor; University Malaysia Pahang, Malaysia as professor and presently University Malaysia Perlis, Malaysia as grade B professor. She is Senior Member of Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) and Fellow Member of International Association of Computer Science and Information Technology (IACSIT). She is also Member of The Institute of Engineering and Technology (IET), Malaysian Research and Educational Network (MyREN) Community; Member of IEEE Communication Society (ComSoc), IEEE Signal Processing Society (SPS), and IEEE Women in Engineering (WIE) and through that holding positions as Vice-Chair, IEEE WIE, Malaysia; Executive Committee Member, IEEE ComSoc / VT (Vehicular Technology) joint chapter, Malaysia; Executive Committee Member, IEEE SPS, Malaysia. She has over 200 published papers/articles; 10 book chapters; 80 products, 80 awards and patents. She served/serving as Editor of various journal and books including guest editor of special issue on Biological Signal Processing and Applications Journal of Medical Imaging and Health Informatics (JMIHI), 2014-15.

Research: Her research interests include wireless communications & networks, DSP and biomedical engineering. Her present research focus falls in Bio-Medical Engineering along with Applications and System Developments. It includes Ultra Wideband (UWB) technology, Digital Signal Processing (DSP) and Artificial Intelligence (AI).  Here, she is trying to investigate and develop systems for early breast tumour/cancer, early brain tumor detection and screening, continuous blood glucose monitoring for diabetic control towards healthy life, and tropical infectious dieses detection to save precious human life.

Research: Identifying different states of breast stem cells to develop the novel combination therapies targeting different breast cancer stem cells. Investigating the combination therapy of PARPi and 17-AAG to target cancer stem cells in Triple-negative breast cancers. Studying the effects of microRNAs on breast cancer stem cell self-renewal and differentiation, and develop some miRNA-based therapies with nanotechnology. Studying the tumor microenvironment in regulating breast cancer stem cells

Research: One of the central questions in Neuroscience is how the brain learns, receives and stores information as memory.   His laboratory is interested in elucidating the physiological mechanisms underlying learning and memory, and also pathogenic mechanisms underlying neurological disorders affecting learning and memory.  To achieve this, They are combining multidisciplinary tools to investigate the processes underlying learning and memory in molecular, cellular, circuit and animal levels. Specifically, They are exploring:  1)How lipid metabolism in the brain affects learning and memory in both physiological and pathological conditions; 2)Whether the non-coding RNA network is involved in the regulation of learning and memory; 3)The relationship between brain energy homeostasis and learning and memory.    

Dr. Huafeng Zhang is a professor in School of Life Science, University of Science and Technology of China (USTC) and a selected member in CAS Hundred Talents Program. She earned her Ph. D from University of Tokyo in Japan in 2004. She went on for her postdoctoral study in National Cancer Institute of NIH from 2004 to 2005, studying protein dynamics. From 2005 to 2010, she worked in the laboratory of Dr. Gregg Semenza in Johns Hopkins University to study hypoxia and cancer development. Her major achievements include multiple highly-cited papers in the field of cancer research. In 2008, Dr. Zhang won the traditional Annual Albert Lehninger Award from Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. She has been a professor in School of Life Science in USTC since 2011.

Research: The major research interest of Dr. Huafeng Zhang is to decipher molecular basis underlying hypoxia and HIF (Hypoxic-inducible-factor) -mediated tumorigenesis and tumor development. Apart from mechanistic studies, screening for HIF1-specific inhibitors for cancer therapy is also under way in her lab. 

Dr. Sanjay D. Deshmukh is working as a Professor of Pathology in Smt. Kashibai Navale Medical College and General Hospital in Pune, India. He has been teaching in various medical colleges and also served in Government Medical colleges MCI recognized at Solapur and Pune in India. He has keen interest in reporting Oncopathology, Histopathology as hospital service and also in patient care. He is an Editorial Board member in various International Journals. He has published more than 70 articles under his name. 

Research: His research interests includes Hematopathology Cytopathology Oncopathology  

Dr. Anthony J. Berdis has over 25 years of research experience in studying the molecular and cellular mechanisms by which DNA polymerases replicate normal and damaged DNA. Of particular interest are the contributions made by Dr. Berdis’ group on studying the activity of terminal deoxynuleotidyl transferase (TdT) and developing nucleoside analogs to selectively inhibit its activity in certain forms of leukemia. Dr. Berdis is a tenured faculty member in the Department of Chemistry and the Center for Gene Regulation in Health and Disease at Cleveland State University (Cleveland, Ohio). He is an internationally recognized expert in the field of the synthesis and biological testing of novel nucleoside and nucleotide analogs as both therapeutic and diagnostic agents target DNA polymerase activity. To date, he has published over 60 research papers and several book chapters on topics including nucleoside analogs and their use as chemotherapeutic agents. His research has been funded by several federal agencies including the National Institutes of Health, the National Science Foundation, and the Department of Defense. Dr. Berdis’ research has led to new models for how DNA polymerases misreplicate damaged DNA, a process known as translesion DNA synthesis. These models invoke the contribution of pi-electron density and nucleobase hydrophobicity as predominant factors influencing polymerase activity on damaged DNA. In recognition for his efforts in translesion DNA synthesis, Dr. Berdis was presented the Henry W. Menn Memorial Award from the Skin Cancer Foundation. In addition, Dr. Berdis holds several patents related to the development and applications of his novel nucleotide analogs as therapeutic and diagnostic agents Several of these patents are leveraged by Red5 Pharmaceuticals, LLC. Dr. Berdis received his Ph.D. in Biochemistry from the University of North Texas in 1993 under the direction of Professor Paul F. Cook, Ph.D., an international expert in the field of mechanistic enzymology. After receiving his doctoral degree, Dr. Berdis received an NIH sponsored postdoctoral fellowship to pursue research under the direction of Professor Stephen J. Benkovic, a world renowned enzymologist and bio-organic chemist. During his post-doctoral training, Dr. Berdis published extensively on several areas including the development of catalytic antibodies as novel biocatalysts, in vitro studies of the protein complexes involved in DNA replication, and epigenetic modifications catalyzed by DNA methyltransferases.

Research: Chemical and biological studies of DNA replication, DNA repair, and nucleoside metabolism as it relates to cancer biology and the development of chemotherapeutic and diagnostic agents. Basic science endeavors focus on elucidating the molecular and cellular mechanisms for the maintenance of genomic fidelity utilizing kinetic methodologies, site-directed mutagenesis, and medicinal chemistry. Information from these basic science studies guide pre-clinical efforts to develop small molecule inhibitors of DNA polymerization and repair pathways that can be used to potentiate the effects of existing chemotherapeutic agents. 

Dr. Rodrigo Fernandez- Valdivia graduated from Universidad Nacional de San Agustín (Arequipa, Peru) and he earned his Doctoral degree from Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, Spain. He was a graduate fellow from the Inter- University Council of the Belgium’s Francophone Community, the FISS program in Spain, and completed his postdoctoral fellowship in the Institute of Molecular Medicine at the University of Texas-Houston. Dr. Fernandez- Valdivia’s contributions include the deciphering of the progesterone-regulated mammary gland transcriptome, the identification of ID4 and RANKL as direct progesterone receptor targets in the breast, the demonstration of the proliferative and carcinogenic properties of RANKL, the discovering Rumi—the sole enzyme capable of adding glucose molecules to proteins in mammals—and its regulatory role in Notch signaling pathway, and the generation of several genetically-engineered animal models to study breast development and tumorigenesis. Furthermore, he has developed the innovative transgenic and genetic engineering technologies with direct clinical impact. His work has been widely recognized, and he has been selected recipient of merit Awards from several scientific societies, scientific journals, biotechnological companies, the American Cancer Society, the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology (FASEB), and the NIH. Dr. Fernandez-Valdivia is currently an Assistant Professor in the Departments of Pathology and Oncology at Wayne State University School of Medicine, and a Scientific Member of the Tumor & Microenvironment Program at the Barbara Ann Karmanos Cancer Institute. He is currently using his expertise in genetic engineering and mouse genetics to identify pharmacologically targetable pathways to treat breast cancer. His research program focuses on the role of O-linked glucose on the regulation of Notch signaling in breast development and carcinogenesis, with particular emphasis in mammary gland stem cells.

Research: Breast cancer Mammary gland development Notch signaling Steroid hormone signaling

Dr. Tao Liu studied for a PhD degree at The University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia on the role of inflammatory mediators in chronic pain due to nerve injury. He then worked on the role of MIC-1, a new member of the transforming growth factor beta superfamily, in cancer cell proliferation, survival/apoptosis and metastasis at St. Vincent's Centre for Applied Medical Research, Sydney, Australia. Dr. Liu joined Children's Cancer Institute Australia for Medical Research as a Senior Research Officer in 2003. Since 2004, he has been focusing his research on the roles of histone deacetylases, histone demethylases, histone methyltransferases and long noncoding RNAs in modulating gene transcription and tumourigenesis, and the roles of histone deacetylase inhibitors and histone methyltransferase inhibitors as anticancer agents. He was promoted to Project Leader in 2009 and Group Leader in 2011.

Research: Broad Research Areas: Molecular and cellular biology Chromatin modification Gene transcription Genomics and epigenetics Drug discovery Experimental cancer therapy   Specific Research Interests: Transcriptional modulation of oncogene and tumour suppressor gene expression by histone deacetylases, histone demethylases and histone methyltransferases. The roles of histone deacetylases, histone demethylases and histone methyltransferases in the initiation and progression of cancer. The anticancer efficacy of histone deacetylase inhibitors and histone methyltransferase inhibitors in cancer cell lines and animal models. Discovery of novel histone methyltransferase inhibitors for the therapy of cancer. Identification of the mechanisms important for the stability and/or degradation of Myc oncoproteins, the most commonly de-regulated oncoprotein in human cancers. Long noncoding RNAs as critical modulators of chromatin function and gene expression. Long noncoding RNAs as novel targets for cancer therapy.    

Dr. Andrey Budanov is an assistant professor of the molecular biology of cancer and aging in the Department of Human and Molecular Genetics at Virginia Commonwealth University. He received his PhD in 2002 and was a postdoctoral fellow in the lab of Michael Karin at the University of California, San Diego until 2011. He was a recipient of several fellowships  and awards, such as postdoctoral fellowship from the Tobacco-Related Disease Research Program, K99/R00 NCI NIH career development grant, W.E. Lower prize for the best publication at the Cleveland Clinic Foundation, and Oxygen Club California BASF Young Investigator Award.  He established his own laboratory in 2011.  

Research: Dr. Andrey Budanov main contributions were: (1) Identification of the Sestrin2 gene as a stress-responsive and p53-regulated gene, involved in regulation of cell viability and cell growth. (2) Characterization of antioxidant function of Sestrins.  (3) Discovery of the role of Sestrins in the regulation of the AMPK-mTOR pathway.  (4) Characterization of Sestrins as suppressors of aging and age-related diseases.  (5) Elucidation of the role of Sestrins as regulators of glucose and lipid metabolism and protectors from insulin resistance and diabetes.

Dr. P. S. Suresh is working as an Assistant Professor in the Department of Bio-Sciences at Mangalore University, India. He received the MS degree in Medical Biochemistry from JIPMER Medical School in 2004. He then received his Ph. D. from Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore in 2010 studying ovarian Biology in rodents and monkeys. He worked as a post-doctoral research scientist in the Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, Medical College of Wisconsin, USA where he initiated study on Endocrine pharmacology and begin to understand how signaling pathways can affect anti-estrogen therapy in breast cancer. He also worked as a research scientist, in Clement J. Zablocki Medical centre, Milwaukee, USA (2011-2013). He also worked as a post-doctoral research scientist in Ohio Medical centre, Ohio state University for a brief period. He is a recipient of several awards including Ramani pulimood and Satya Bhama murali Rangarajan gold medals for best outgoing student in Bachelors and Masters Degree respectively. Broadly, current research projects in his lab focus on endocrine cancers, signal transduction and reproductive and Molecular endocrinology.

Research: His research interest includes are Reproductive and Molecular endocrinology Immunopharmacology Signal transduction Cancer pharmacology  

Dr. Chunying Li is an Assistant Professor at Department of Biochemistry & Molecular Biology and Department of Oncology, as well as a Scientific Member at Barbara Ann Karmanos Cancer Institute and Cardiovascular Research Institute at Wayne State University School of Medicine in Detroit of Michigan. Dr. Li received his Ph.D. in Physiology at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center. His research has been well funded by grants from a variety of foundations and associations such as American Heart Association, Elsa U. Pardee Foundation, American Cancer Society, etc. Dr. Li has published highly-referred manuscripts in top-tier journals such as Cell, Journal of Experimental Medicine, PNAS, Journal of Biological Chemistry, Cancer Letters, Translational Oncology, PLoS ONE, etc. His research interest lies in the inflammation and cancer biology, with focus on defining the molecular mechanisms of chemokines and their receptors in cancer progression, tumor angiogenesis, inflammation, etc.

Research: (1). To understand the macromolecular signaling complex of chemokine receptors (CXCR2, CXCR5, CX3CR1, etc) in various disease conditions: Pathological Angiogenesis (endothelial progenitor cell angiogenesis in ischemia, arterial injury, endothelial progenitor cell tumor angiogenesis in cancer) Tumorigenicity & Metastasis (pancreatic, prostate, and oral / head-neck cancers) Inflammation (immune cell response in cystic fibrosis and inflammatory bowel disease)   (2). To identify new therapeutic targets (in chemokine receptor signaling) & develop novel intervention strategies for disease prevention and treatment.

Peter Lobie obtained a B.Med.Sci. (Distinction) and MBBS (Medicine First Class Honours) in 1992 from the University of Queensland in Australia. He was awarded the highest accolade from the University in the form of a University Medal. His postdoctoral work was undertaken at the Karolinska Institute in Sweden where he also obtained a PhD. He has consecutively held faculty positions in Singapore and New Zealand. He was also New Zealand’s first chair of Breast Cancer funded by the Breast Cancer Research Trust. He is now is Professor and Senior Principal Investigator at the newly formed Cancer Science Institute of Singapore.

Dr. Dagmara McGuinness current interests include the epigenetics of disease and normal tissue, with a focus on transplantation and renal function. Her current research has demonstrated the ability of various classes of non-coding RNAs including microRNAs and lncRNAs, measured pre-transplant, to predict post-transplant outcomes in renal transplant patients. This methodology has also shown some potential for differentiating serum/tissues samples from cancer patients and those from non-cancer patients. Recently this has involved demonstrating the effects of socio-economic factors and environmental toxins on epigenetics and pre-disposition to disease and accelerated ageing. Furthermore, her research has demonstrated that global methylation is influenced by socio-economic factors and this alteration may results in a higher risk for specific diseases. Recently, she have also demonstrated the involvement of the CDKN2A locus in the accelerated ageing phenotype associated with viral infections, including HCV and HIV

Research: Her research interests includes  chip technology nanotechnology cell signalling both in physiological and pathological conditions