Marcus Ruscetti, PhD, and collaborator Prabhani Atukorale, PhD, have been featured in Genetic Engineering & Biotechnology News to highlight their recent paper, published in Science Translational Medicine, describing their innovative combination immunotherapy-based approach for pancreatic cancer. Read the article in Genetic Engineering & Biotechnology News.

Paul Kaufman, PhD, has received an NIGMS R35 Maximizing Investigators’ Research Award (MIRA) to study the cell biology of mammalian nuclei. The grant will investigate how a protein called Ki-67 protects chromosomes from DNA damage, and will explore dynamic events in the nuclei of macrophages, a critically important cell type in the innate immune system.

Three MCCB faculty are 2024 UMass Chan BRIDGE Fund awardees! The projects were awarded on the basis of their promise for translation to clinical application and commercialization.

Sharon Cantor, PhD: GapScore assay identifies chemo-sensitive cancers

Marcus Ruscetti, PhD: Engineering multi-targeted LNPs for improved delivery and retention of tumor and immune therapies in pancreatic cancer

Scot Wolfe, PhD: CRISPR-mediated selective killing of cancer cells harboring gene amplifications

Read the full story from UMass Chan News.

Lucas Restrepo, a PhD student in the Baehrecke lab, has received an NINDS F31 fellowship to investigate a putative mitochondrial solute carrier that regulates mitophagy. His studies aim to better our understanding of mitophagy—a process that removes and recycles damaged mitochondria—with the goal of providing new insights into potential therapeutic strategies to combat defective mitophagy diseases, such as Parkinson’s disease.