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UT Health SA Newsroom: UT Health San Antonio physician-researcher contributes to international screening guidelines for rare pediatric cancers

August 2, 2018

SAN ANTONIO (Aug. 2, 2017) ―Approximately 10 percent of childhood cancer can be attributed to genetics. While genomic analysis has been used for some time to identify the risk of inherited cancer in adults, scientists are now using genomic analysis to identify genetic risk factors and to diagnose cancer at an early age in children. […]


CRISPR – Journal: CRISPR-Based Editing Reveals Edge-Specific Effects in Biological Networks

August 1, 2018

Yi Li, Chance M. Nowak, Daniel Withers, Alexander Pertsemlidis, Leonidas Bleris Abstract Unraveling the properties of biological networks is central to understanding both normal and disease cellular phenotypes. Networks consist of functional elements (nodes) that form a variety of diverse connections (edges), with each node being a hub for multiple edges. Herein, in contrast to node-centric network perturbation […]


Cancer Letters: miR-195 potentiates the efficacy of microtubule-targeting agents in non-small cell lung cancer

July 28, 2018

Xiaojie Yuab, Yiqiang Zhanga, Xiuye Maa, Alexander Pertsemlidisabc Abstract Microtubule-targeting agents (MTAs) are widely used for the treatment of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). The response rate is only ∼25%, mainly attributable to drug resistance. To identify the determinants of resistance in NSCLC, we performed a high-throughput screen using a library of miRNA mimics. Here we report that […]


Oncotarget: Increased expression of the thyroid hormone nuclear receptor TRα1 characterizes intestinal tumors with high Wnt activity

July 24, 2018

Joel Uchuya-Castillo, Nicolas Aznar, Carla Frau, Pierre Martinez, Clementine Le Nevé, Laetitia Marisa, Luiz OF Penalva, Pierre Laurent-Puig, Alain Puisieux, Jean-Yves Scoazec, Jacques Samarut, Stephane Ansieau, Michelina Plateroti Our previous work demonstrated a key function of the thyroid hormone nuclear receptor TRα1, a T3-modulated transcription factor, in controlling intestinal development and homeostasis via the Wnt […]


Journal of Clinical Oncology: Cardiovascular Disease in Survivors of Childhood Cancer: Insights Into Epidemiology, Pathophysiology, and Prevention

July 20, 2018

Saro H. Armenian, Gregory T. Armstrong, Gregory Aune, Eric J. Chow, Matthew J. Ehrhardt, Bonnie Ky,  ABSTRACT Cardiovascular disease (CVD), which includes cardiomyopathy/heart failure, coronary artery disease, stroke, pericardial disease, arrhythmias, and valvular and vascular dysfunction, is a major concern for long-term survivors of childhood cancer. There is clear evidence of increased risk of CVD largely attributable to treatment exposures […]


Cell Report: Opposing Tumor-Promoting and -Suppressive Functions of Rictor/mTORC2 Signaling in Adult Glioma and Pediatric SHH Medulloblastoma

July 10, 2018

Seçkin Akgül 1, Yinghua Li 2, Siyuan Zheng 3, Marcel Kool 4, Daniel M Treisman 5, Chaoyang Li 2, Yuan Wang 2, Susanne Gröbner 4, Tsuneo Ikenoue 6, Yiping Shen 7, Sandra Camelo-Piragua 8, Gerald Tomasek 9, Sebastian Stark 4, Vinay Guduguntla 9, James F Gusella 7, Kun-Liang Guan 6, Stefan M Pfister 10, Roel G W Verhaak 11, Yuan Zhu 12 Abstract Most human cancers arise from stem and progenitor cells by the sequential accumulation of genetic and epigenetic alterations, while cancer modeling typically requires simultaneous multiple oncogenic events. Here, we […]


Oncotarget: LMO1 functions as an oncogene by regulating TTK expression and correlates with neuroendocrine differentiation of lung cancer

July 3, 2018

Liqin Du1, Zhenze Zhao1, Milind Suraokar2, Spencer S. Shelton1, Xiuye Ma3, Tzu-Hung Hsiao4, John D. Minna5, Ignacio Wistuba2,6 and Alexander Pertsemlidis3,7 ABSTRACT LMO1 encodes a protein containing a cysteine-rich LIM domain involved in protein-protein interactions. Recent studies have shown that LMO1 functions as an oncogene in several cancer types, including non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). However, […]


Cancer Letters: Sorafenib improves alkylating therapy by blocking induced inflammation, invasion and angiogenesis in breast cancer cells

July 1, 2018

AlfeuZanotto-Filhoac  SubapriyaRajamanickama  EvaLoranca  V. Pragathi Masamsettia  AparnaGorthiab  July CarolinaRomeroab  SonalTonapiab  Rosangela Mayer Gonçalvesc  Robert L.Reddickd  RaymondBenavidese  JohnKuhnde  YidongChenf  Alexander J.R.Bishopab Abstract Molecularly targeted compounds are emerging as a strategy to improve classical chemotherapy. Herein, we describe that using a low dose of the multikinase inhibitor sorafenib improves cyclophosphamide antitumor activity by inhibiting angiogenesis, metastasis, and promoting tumor healing in MDA-MB231 xenografts and the 4T1-12B syngeneic breast […]


The Journal of Physical Chemistry Letters: Extensive Sampling of the Cavity of the GroEL Nanomachine by Protein Substrates Probed by Paramagnetic Relaxation Enhancement

June 21, 2018

Marielle A Wälti 1, David S Libich 1, G Marius Clore 1 Abstract The chaperonin GroEL is an 800 kDa nanomachine comprising two heptameric rings, each of which encloses a large cavity or folding chamber. The GroEL cycle involves ATP-dependent capping of the cavity by the cochaperone GroES to create a nanocage in which a single protein molecule can fold. […]


Cancer Research: Differential Effects of Estrogen Receptor β Isoforms on Glioblastoma Progression

June 15, 2018

Jinyou Liu # 1 2, Gangadhara R Sareddy # 1 3, Mei Zhou 1 4, Suryavathi Viswanadhapalli 1, Xiaonan Li 1, Zhao Lai 5, Rajeshwar R Tekmal 1 3, Andrew Brenner 3 6, Ratna K Vadlamudi 7 3 Abstract The estrogen receptor β (ERβ) functions as a tumor suppressor in glioblastoma (GBM) cells. However, the in vivo significance of endogenous ERβ and the roles of its isoforms in GBM are incompletely understood. Using ERβ isoform-specific PCR screening, we found that GBM cells […]