NIH/NCI Program Project

Study Goal: This project will test the hypothesis that cells with metastasis-initiating cell (MIC) phenotype can recruit and reprogram bystander circulating and disseminated tumor cells (CTCs/DTCs) to participate in PC metastatic cascade.

Study Goal: This project will investigate the interactions of the catabolic products of perlecan (PLN) destruction in the tumor microenvironment with PC cells, using both proteolytic fragments and released growth factor cargo bound to PLN HS chains.

Study Goal: This project will determine if the stromal changes identified are biologically consequential to bone metastasis, if the epithelial changes observed in the prostatic tissue enable bone colonization, and if the stromal-epithelial alterations observed in model systems is found in patients with bone metastatic disease.

Study Goal: This project will test the hypothesis that SAFB1 loss activates a novel transcriptional program that alters lipid metabolism in a manner that elevates intratumoral cholesterol and androgenic sterols, and enhances intracrine pathways of androgen receptor activation.

Study Goal: This core will provide state-of-art biostatistics and bioinformatics methods and software pipelines for efficient data analysis and establish a centralized relational database system and data management structure that facilitates the entry, storage and retrieval of all data generated by the program project, and permits the controlled exchange of information across the several projects and cores.

Study Goal: This core will provide well-characterized and highly annotated, archival pathological samples collected from different PC cell lines, from human and animal model experimental tissue, and from routine and advanced histological procedures performed on soft and hard tissues.