Paul Campagnola, PhDUniversity of Wisconsin – Madison2015 Joanie Warner Bridge Funding Award Quantitative Assessment of the Role of Collagen Alterations in Ovarian Cancer High grade serous ovarian cancer arises from fallopian tube cells that migrate and implant on the ovaries, then subsequently metastasize to other sites in the body. The 3-dimensional composition and architecture of […]
Read MoreDaniela Matei, MDIndiana University Atransglutaminase 2 Modulates Sensitivity to Chemotherapy in Ovarian Cancer The most significant cause of death and illness related to ovarian cancer is its propensity to spread in the abdomen. However, the mechanisms responsible for spread are not known. We discovered that an enzyme called transglutaminase 2 (TG2) is present at high […]
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Carrie Rinker-Schaeffer, PhDUniversity of Chicago Milky Spot Macrophages: Co-Conspirators in Omental Metastasis Formation No one knows what microenvironmental interactions control ovarian cancer metastasis. Getting this crucial information requires a fresh look from a new perspective. Recently Dr. Rinker-Schaeffer’s lab made a novel connection between ovarian cancer metastatic colonization and structures on the omentum (tissues in […]
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Anirban Mitra, PhDIndiana University Microenvironment Induced Epigenetic Regulation in Ovarian Cancer The spreading of cancer cells from the primary ovarian tumor to distant organs within the abdomen is the most critical step in ovarian cancer. Yet it remains the least understood aspect of the disease. Using unique and clinically relevant experimental models, including primary human […]
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Karen Lounsbury, PhDUniversity of Vermont and State Agricultural College Protein Translation Regulators and the Ovarian Cancer Microenvironment The Lounsbury/Francklyn labs have discovered a role for the enzyme threonyl tRNA synthetase (TARS) in promoting blood vessel growth (angiogenesis) in ovarian cancer. These studies led to the characterization of a selective TARS inhibitor that reduces angiogenesis in […]
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Martin Cannon, PhDUniversity of Arkansas for Medical Science Dendritic cell vaccination & inhibition of tumor-associated immune suppression Recent clinical studies have found that ovarian cancer patients with Th17 lymphocyte infiltrates in tumors enjoy a markedly longer overall survival, suggesting that Th17 cells play a protective role against ovarian cancer. Dr. Cannon designed an innovative approach […]
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Erinn Rankin, PhDStanford University2016 Pape Family Pilot Study Award Targeting the hypoxic secretome in omental metastasis Mesothelial cells line the abdominal cavity and play an important role in ovarian cancer metastasis. These mesothelial cells in the presence of ovarian cancer tumors are deprived of oxygen (hypoxic) and, as a result, produce components of the hypoxia […]
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Natasa Obermajer, PhDUniversity of Pittsburgh Taming MDSC-controlled Th17-to-Treg cell conversion in ovarian cancer Regulatory T (Treg) cells are part of the immune system and have been shown in ovarian cancer to suppresses immune cell activity and prevent the immune system from fighting ovarian cancer cells. Dr. Obermajer has shown that another type of immune system […]
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Iain McNeish, MD, PhD, FRCPUniversity of Glasgow Improved models of high grade serous ovarian cancer To understand how cancers grow and spread within patients, it is essential that researchers have realistic and simple animal models that accurately recreate the mutations seen in the DNA of human cancers. Dr. McNeish will use a new technique, called […]
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Fiona Yull, D.Phil.Vanderbilt University Bromodomain inhibition in ovarian cancer and the tumor microenvironment Scientists are actively working to find new therapies for ovarian cancer as resistance to current therapies, including PARP inhibitors and cisplatin, poses a major problem in the clinic. One promising approach is to develop strategies that activate the patient’s normal immune system […]
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