Brigitte Thériault, PhD
Ontario Cancer Institute
Modulation of KIF14 overexpression in ovarian cancer
Dr. Thériault’s lab had previously discovered that the gene KIF14 is present in high amounts in the majority of ovarian cancers, and that patients with high KIF14 have much worse survival than patients with low KIF14. KIF14 is normally found in cells that are growing and dividing and is usually not found in adult human tissues. Her prior research in cell cultures and in animal models has shown that accumulation of KIF14 leads to tumor spread and blocking KIF14 causes tumor cell death. Dr. Thériault’s goal in this project is to understand how tumors accumulate such high amounts of KIF14 so that she can find ways to block KIF14 production, stop tumor cell growth, and improve the survival of ovarian cancer patients.