Medicine and Health Sciences Commons^™

Mechanisms And Consequences Of Myb Gene Activation In Salivary Gland Tumors, Candace Frerich

Biomedical Sciences ETDs

Salivary gland adenoid cystic carcinoma (ACC) is an aggressive tumor with a tendency to infiltrate surrounding nerves and metastasize to distant sites. The standard treatment often fails to control local tumor recurrence and distant metastases and no approved targeted therapeutic options exist for these tumors. The goal of our studies was to reveal the molecular mechanisms driving ACC tumor development and novel drug targets to improve patient morbidity and mortality.

We first analyzed clinical and RNA-sequencing (RNA-seq) data for 68 formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded (FFPE) ACC tumor samples and described previously unappreciated molecular heterogeneity that predicts patient outcome. The poor outcome subgroup …

Incorporation Of Egfr And Ron Receptors Into Nanodiscs, Cristina Flores-Cadengo

Biomedical Engineering ETDs

Understanding the structure-function relationship of membrane receptors is essential to comprehend the crosstalk between key signaling pathways. Aberrant trans-activation between receptors can lead to tumorigenesis. Two of these receptors known to be involved in cancer development are receptor tyrosine kinases (RTKs), RON (Recepteur d'Origine Nantais) and EGFR (Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor). There has been evidence of heterodimerization and crosstalk between these two receptors based on co-immunoprecipitation, however the structural requirements behind these interactions remain unknown. Structural studies could provide insights into these RTKs’ modes of dimerization and structure-function relationship. However, structural studies of full-length membrane proteins are often difficult due …