Identifying Breast Cancer Oncogenes

Abstract

Breast cancer is attributed to genetic alterations, the majority of which are yet to be characterized. Oncogenic alterations that give rise to breast tumors need to be identified to develop targeted treatment options and consequently, improve clinical outcomes. We aim to identify kinases that drive breast oncogenesis. We hypothesize that a kinase gain-of-function screen in human mammary epithelial cells will identify novel breast cancer oncogenes and provide potential targets for drug intervention. The study is based on a transformation model that requires simultaneous activation of the PI3K/AKT and MEK/ERK pathways to transform human mammary epithelial cells. A pBabe-Puro-Myr-Flag kinase ORF library was screened in immortalized human mammary epithelial cells expressing myr-AKT. Three kinases PTK6, PAK1 and CAMK4 promoted robust anchorage-independent growth in soft agar and are further being validated to understand their mechanism of action and relevance in human cancer.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Oct 01, 2009
Accession Number
ADA515800

Entities

People

  • Yashaswi Shrestha

Organizations

  • Dana–Farber Cancer Institute

Tags

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Abstracts
  • Biomedical Research
  • Breast Cancer
  • Cancer
  • Cells
  • Department Of Defense
  • Diseases And Disorders
  • Epithelial Cells
  • Information Operations
  • Lung Cancer
  • Lymphatic Diseases
  • Neoplasms
  • Skin And Connective Tissue Diseases
  • Skin Diseases

Fields of Study

  • Medicine

Readers

  • Breast cancer cell signaling and growth regulation.
  • Molecular Biology and Genetics

Technology Areas

  • Biotechnology