Laboratory of the Molecular Biology of Cancer
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ProfileProf. Agnieszka Kobielak The progression of cancer from locally growing to treatment-resistant and metastatic is most often the event responsible for treatment failures. The biology underpinning the fact, that some tumor cells are more resistant to the currently available treatments, or are prone to become invasive, is still poorly understood. The theory of cancer stem cells suggests phenotypic and functional heterogeneity within the primary tumor. Cancer stem cells have been increasingly shown to play an integral role in tumor initiation, disease progression, metastasis and treatment resistance. Therefore our research is focused on:
In our experimental approach we are using different molecular and cellular approaches. We are also developing reporter systems combined with lineage tracing to study cancer stem cells, cancer invasion and metastasis as well as cancer heterogeneity in primary mouse tumor models and in human cancers. The progression of cancer from locally growing to treatment-resistant and metastatic is most often the event responsible for treatment failures. The biology underpinning the fact, that some tumor cells are more resistant to the currently available treatments, or are prone to become invasive, is largely unknown. The theory of cancer-initiating cells suggests phenotypic and functional heterogeneity within the primary tumor. Cancer-initiating cells have been increasingly shown to play an integral role in tumor initiation, disease progression, metastasis and treatment resistance. Therefore, our laboratory’s goal is to understand signaling pathways on a molecular level, as well as the molecules involved in tumor heterogeneity. We are also interested in the role of microenvironment in the development of the phenotypic and functional diversity of tumor cells. In our experimental approach, we use tools of molecular biology, tumor mouse models, functional genomics, and in vivo imaging. |
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LeaderMajor Areas of Research Interest Adult stem cells Education and degrees 1997 M.Sc. (Molecular Biology), University of A. Mickiewicz, Poznan, Poland Professional background 2015-current: Group leader, Laboratory of the Molecular Biology of Cancer 2007-2015: Assistant Professor of Otolaryngology and Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Southern California, Keck School of Medicine 2002-2007: Postdoctoral Associate, The Rockefeller University, Laboratory of Mammalian Cell Biology and Development, New York, NY, USA 2001-2002: Postdoctoral Associate, University of Chicago, Department of Molecular Genetics and Cell Biology, Chicago, IL, USA 1999-2000: Assistant, Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, K. Marcinkowski University of Medical Sciences, Poznan, Poland, 1997-1999: Doctoral student, Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, K. Marcinkowski University of Medical Sciences, Poznan, Poland, Honors and Awards ESHG Scholarship for Young Researcher, 31th Annual Meeting of the European Society of Human Genetics, Geneva, Switzerland, 1999 FEBS Scholarship for Young Researcher, 26th Meeting of the Federation of European Biochemical Societies Nice, France, 1999 Scientific Research Award for doctoral student, Polish State Committee (KBN), Poznan, Poland Mozolowski’s First Prize for the best paper presented by a doctoral student at the 35th Meeting of the Polish Biochemical Society, Olsztyn, Poland, 1999 An Award from the President of K. Marcinkowski University of Medical Sciences for the best Ph.D. thesis, Poznan, Poland, 2000 FEBS Scholarship for Young Researcher, 18th International Congress of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Birmingham, UK, 2000 American Cancer Society, Pilot Grant for New Investigator, 2007 Robert E. and May R. Wright Foundation Award, 2008 Stop Cancer, Research Career Development Award, 2009 Margaret Early Medical Research Trust, 2010 |
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ContactProf. Agnieszka Kobielak |