CMTRA Conference

A lot of things have been going on and keeping up with them all on the blog has been a challenge, as I’m sure you’ve noticed! 

Recently Elaine was sent to the 2011 MolecularTherapeutics of Cancer Research Conference where she got the chance to hear top scientists discuss cutting edge research at the Asilomar Conference Center in Pacific Grove, CA.  Talks covered topics ranging from the challenges of gaining government approval for clinical research to the minute details of manipulating signaling pathways in novel ways to treat a wide variety of cancers.  Participants came from both industry and academia to discuss the near and long-ranging future of molecular therapeutics. 

Tools for Pediatric Cancer Drug Discovery

Finding a cure for cancer means knowing what drugs are available and how they are currently performing on the market.  There are any number of sources for this information including personal networking, publications and databases of current research aims and goals.  Drugpath.org is an online database that lists cancer drugs that are currently being developed.  The drugs are listed by a variety of characteristics that allows scientists to search for particulars that are relevant to their interests. 

The database is maintained by a research team of faculty and students at Texas Tech University System and collaborates with the National Center for Integrative Biomedical Informatics (NCIBI).  Both researchers and members of industry can join in order to maximize exposure to new drugs and new applications for both groups. 

Valuing our Colleagues

As we mentioned last time, the core of the PPTI is the mouse colony.  Thanks to the hard work and diligence of the laboratory animal technicians of OHSU’s Department of Comparative Medicine, we know that our mice will always have the best care any one of them could ask for.  While we rely on the talented and dedicated staff as a whole, we would like to take the time during International Laboratory Animal Technician Week to thank the two primary caregivers of our rooms.

Larry Belle manages our barrier room where we keep the bulk of our mouse colony.  His attention to detail means that we can maintain complex mouse strains without any worries.  Larry’s sense of humor makes the trials of such a full room much more fun than they have a right to be!

Freian Valbuena has only recently been introduced to our mice in a more conventional room.  These experimental mice form the backbone of our data collection and are critical to Keller lab members and PPTI projects alike.  Freian’s great communication skills have made the establishment of this room smooth and problem free.  We are looking forward to getting to know him better.

Mouse Models

The strength of the PPTI is its use of genetically engineered mouse models to study the effect of drugs on particular kinds of cancer.   In the past, cancer models used mice with weakened or missing immune systems that added in cancer cells to watch their growth (xenografts).  This method has yielded many great results but we know that cancer interacts heavily with the immune system interact so this is a major drawback of the model to consider.  Another concern is the location of the tumors that grow – the cancer cells are added in places that are easy to get to and are not necessarily the natural site of development.  

Both of these issues are addressed in the PPTI models of cancer in that the mice have normal immune systems and are genetically modified so that their tumors begin and expand in the places that are found in patients.  Combined with other changes that allow us to “see” these tumors as they develop we believe that we have a unique opportunity to find effective treatments faster than ever before.

A Word from Charles

             As a physician-scientist, my laboratory is devoted to the development of novel molecular therapies for advanced childhood solid tumors associated with high morbidity or mortality. To achieve this goal, my laboratory utilizes physiologically-accurate, genetically-engineered mouse models (GEMMs) of three related pediatric small round blue cell tumors: medulloblastoma, alveolar rhabdomyosarcoma and embryonal rhabdomyosarcoma. Medulloblastoma is a childhood brain tumor with a predilection for leptomeningeal metastasis for which radiation-sparing treatments are needed, whereas alveolar and embryonal rhabdomyosarcoma are aggressive muscle cancers that are difficult to cure if not completely resected or if metastatic. The long-term emphasis of my laboratory’s research is the investigation of tumor progression, since advanced disease remains the greatest challenge in the treatment of children with these cancers. The ultimate goal of my research program is to develop pre-clinically tested, molecularly-targeted therapies to halt progression or induce regression for gross residual disease, metastatic disease and relapsed disease.

Accelerating Drug Discovery

We are very excited to welcome the newest member of our equipment crew:  the Eppendorf epMotion 5075!  (Shown here with Jinu Abraham, PhD, our Scientific Manager.)  This machine will give us high throughput capabilities that will be critical for getting drugs into the testing process and out into trials as fast as possible (with the least amount of human error!)  This instrument is also central to the forthcoming Personalized Medicine effort for childhood cancer at OHSU.    Check back to see it in action!

Scientific and Operational Managers: Jinu Abraham and Elaine Huang

Jinu Abraham, PhD earned his doctoral degree in Molecular and Cellular Biology and as a postdoctoral researcher in the Keller laboratory has been investigating how rhabdomyosarcoma can, over time, begin to develop resistance to treatment by a class of drugs called tyrosine kinase inhibitors.  He is the driving force behind the analysis and selection of novel therapeutic agents to be tested by the PPTI. 

Elaine Huang, MSc received her M. Sc. in Immunology and begain working in an industry-sponsored GLP/GMP clinical cell and vaccine production facility.  More recently she has been employed in a facility dedicated to generating genetically modified mice for the research community of OHSU.  The PPTI will utilize her experience with animals and familiarity with industry standards to streamline the testing and analysis of drugs.