Disease Focus: Blood Cancer
Clinical Investigation of a Humanized Anti-CD47 Antibody in Targeting Cancer Stem Cells in Hematologic Malignancies and Solid Tumors
Most normal tissues are maintained by a small number of stem cells that can both self-renew to maintain stem cell numbers, and also give rise to progenitors that make mature cells. We have shown that normal stem cells can accumulate mutations that cause progenitors to self-renew out of control, forming cancer stem cells (CSC). CSC […]
Therapeutic Eradication of Cancer Stem Cells with UC-961 (Cirmtuzumab)
Cancer is a leading cause of death in California. Research has found that many cancers can spread throughout the body and resist current anti-cancer therapies because of cancer stem cells, or CSC. CSC can be considered the seeds of cancer; they can resist being killed by anti-cancer drugs and can lay dormant, sometimes for long […]
Human endothelial reprogramming for hematopoietic stem cell therapy.
The current roadblocks to hematopoietic stem cell (HSC) therapies include the rarity of matched donors for bone marrow transplant, engraftment failures, common shortages of donated blood, and the inability to expand HSCs ex vivo in large numbers. These major obstacles would cease to exist if an extensive, bankable, inexhaustible, and patient-matched supply of blood were […]
Prostaglandin pathway regulation of self-renwal in hematopoietic and leukemia stem cells
Leukemias are cancers of the blood cells that result from corruption of the normal controls that regulate blood-forming stem cells. They are serious causes of illness and death, and are particularly devastating in children and the elderly. Despite substantial advances in treatment of leukemia, a significant proportion of cases are unresponsive to current therapy. Since […]
Stem Cell Gene Therapy for HIV in AIDS Lymphoma Patients
The Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) is still a major health problem. In both developed and underdeveloped nations, millions of people are infected with this virus. HIV infects cells of the immune system, becomes part of the cell’s genetic information, stays there for the rest of the life of these cells, and uses these cells as […]
Dual targeting of tyrosine kinase and BCL6 signaling for leukemia stem cell eradication
Leukemia is the most frequent form of cancer in children and teenagers, but is also common in adults. Chemotherapy has vastly improved the outcome of leukemia over the past four decades. However, many patients still die because of recurrence of the disease and development of drug-resistance in leukemia cells. In preliminary studies for this proposal […]
Dual targeting of tyrosine kinase and BCL6 signaling for leukemia stem cell eradication
Leukemia is the most frequent form of cancer in children and teenagers, but is also common in adults. Chemotherapy has vastly improved the outcome of leukemia over the past four decades. However, many patients still die because of recurrence of the disease and development of drug-resistance in leukemia cells. In preliminary studies for this proposal […]
Preclinical development of a pan Bcl2 inhibitor for cancer stem cell directed therapy
Cancer is the leading cause of death for individuals under 85. Relapse and metastatic disease are the leading causes of cancer related mortality. Anti-apoptotic BCL2 family member overexpression has been shown to promote disease progression in both chronic myeloid leukemia (CML) and prostate cancer. Andr., the emergence of cancer stem cells (CSC) promotes apoptosis resistance […]
Niche-Focused Research: Discovery & Development of Hematopoietic Regenerative Factors
Bone marrow and peripheral blood transplantation utilizing blood stem cells can provide curative treatment for patients with cancers and non-cancerous diseases of the blood and immune systems. Such treatments can be curative because the stem cells contained within the bone marrow or peripheral blood of healthy donors are capable of replacing the entirety of the […]
Combinatorial Chemistry Approaches to Develop LIgands against Leukemia Stem Cells
Various cells and organs in the human body originate from a small group of primitive cells called stem cells. Human cancer cells were also recently found to arise from a group of special stem cells, called cancer stem cells (CSCs). At present, cancer that has spread throughout the body (metastasized) is difficult to treat, and […]