Molecular Targets

The function of the program is to identify novel targets for chemotherapy based on current knowledge of the biology of neoplastic cells and tumors.

All 38 members are active investigators and have expertise in diverse areas, including:

  1. Neurobiology
  2. Biochemistry
  3. Oncology
  4. Nanotechnology
  5. Physics
  6. DNA repair
  7. General molecular biology

This diversity provides a unique platform for the development of novel therapeutic strategies. Members of the Molecular Targets Program are engaged in multiple and diverse ongoing research activities which include:

  1. Investigations of the antineoplastic activity of G-rich oligonucleotides
  2. Chemokines as determinants of the sites of metastatic tumor spread
  3. Importance of lysosomal cysteine proteases in tumor cell growth and metastasis
  4. DNA repair as a mutagenic mechanism
  5. New cancer vaccination strategies
  6. Interference with cancer cell metabolism
  7. Effects of steroids on drug/carcinogen metabolism
  8. Mechanisms of cell damage by reactive oxygen and modes of cell death
  9. Modulation of tumor growth by inflammation and immune recognition
  10. Importance of transforming genes in tumor growth and progression
  11. Modulation of gene expression by site-specific triplex forming oligonucleotides

Despite the evident diversity of these activities, there is strong common interest in mechanisms involved in the control of neoplastic cell growth, death and spread, and–based on knowledge of these mechanisms–in the development of novel antineoplastic agents.