The Damon Runyon Cancer Research Foundation, a non-profit organization focused on supporting exceptional early career researchers and innovative cancer research, named 11 new Damon Runyon Fellows at its November 2009 Fellowship Award Committee review. The recipients of this prestigious, three-year award are outstanding postdoctoral scientists conducting basic and translational cancer research in the laboratories of leading senior investigators across the country. The Fellowship encourages the nation's most promising young scientists to pursue careers in cancer research by providing them with independent funding ($140,000 each) to work on innovative projects.
November 2009 Damon Runyon Fellows:
Meelad M. Dawlaty, PhD, with his sponsor Rudolf Jaenisch, MD, at the Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Research, Cambridge, Massachusetts, is establishing the significance of epigenetic alterations (chemical modifications of DNA) in brain cancer formation, or glioblastomagenesis. The goal of his research is to determine the role of epigenetic changes in glioblastomagenesis.
Harrison W. Gabel, PhD, with his sponsor Michael E. Greenberg, PhD, at Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, is investigating how dysfunction of ubiquitin ligase UBE3A, an enzyme that normally regulates amounts of specific proteins in the cell, leads to diseases such as the neurodevelopmental disorder Angelman Syndrome and common cervical cancers. These studies can provide important insights into the mechanism of disease.
Nicholas R. Guydosh, PhD, [HHMI Fellow] with his sponsor Rachel D. Green, PhD, at The Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Maryland, is studying how proteins are manufactured in cells. Small changes in this process can lead to the production of defective proteins and result in many types of cancer.
Tom A. Hartl, PhD, with his sponsor Matthew P. Scott, PhD, at Stanford University, Stanford, California, is studying proteins called insulin-like growth factors (IGFs), molecules that are essential for normal growth during development. When hyperactive, IGF signaling has been implicated in uncontrolled cell proliferation and can lead to a variety of cancers. His goal is to understand key events in IGF regulation and how these may go awry in the development of human cancers.
Bj-rn F.C. Kafsack, PhD, [HHMI Fellow] with his sponsor Manuel Llin-s, PhD, at Princeton University, Princeton, New Jersey, is examining how cell behavior is dependent on cell density (the number of other cells nearby). He is using the parasite Plasmodium falciparum as an experimental model. His goal is to apply this knowledge to understanding how cancer cells respond to their surrounding environment, resulting in tumor growth and metastasis.
Rebecca S. Mathew, PhD, [HHMI Fellow] with her sponsor Danesh Moazed, PhD, at Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, is studying how cell identity is maintained throughout the life of an organism. She is focusing on the role of a protein complex called CLRC in modifying chromosome architecture. Failure to maintain cell identity has catastrophic consequences, often resulting in cancer or other diseases.