Cell Death and Cell Survival in Cancer

Dario Altieri, M.D., PhD

The Altieri Laboratory is interested in how tumor cells evade from a normal process of cellular suicide also called apoptosis or programmed cell death.  Apoptosis is ont of the most intensely investigated fields in cellular and molecular biology.  Several significant discoveries have been made over the years in the lab, to include Survivin, first cloned in the Altieri lab, which is the only IAP gene that is cell cycle-regulated and prominently expressed at mitosis in a transcriptionally-controlled pathway.  The laboratory is divided in working groups addressing the various aspects of the interface between cell proliferation and cell survival and how new knowledga generated in these studies can be translated in pathophysiologically relevant approaches for cancer treatment and therapy.

Erik Baehrecke, PhD

The Baehrecke Laboratory studies the mechanisms that regulate autophagy, cell survival and programmed cell death in the context of normal and abnormal development.  Altered autophagy, cell survival and cell death are associated with a cariety of human disorders including cancer.  Using global genomic approaches, including DNA microarrays, proteomics and forward genetic screens, a key focus in the lab is to identify genes and proteins involved in programmed cell death development.