Medicine, Hematology/Oncology
Supervisor: Jesus Delgado-Calle
- Internship Location:
-
Medicine
- Pre Professional Interests Preferred:
-
Pre-Medicine
- Environment:
-
Lab
- Dress Code:
- Closed-toe shoes, long pants or skirts that fully cover the legs, and a lab coat
- Majors Preferred:
-
Biology
- Hours per week:
- 10
- Schedule:
- Flexible within regular work hours
- Summary:
- Our lab studies the mechanisms regulating the growth of multiple myeloma cancer cells in bone. Osteocytes are the most abundant cells in bone and control bone homeostasis. Projects in our lab focus on the mechanisms by which osteocytes contribute to generate a microenvironment that is conducive to tumor progression and bone destruction in multiple myeloma disease. Current projects investigate the effects of genetic and pharmacological inhibition of osteocyte-derived factors in tumor growth and multiple myeloma-induced bone fragility and muscle weakness; the role of bidirectional Notch signaling between MM cells and osteocytes in multiple myeloma disease; and the effects of Aplidin (a novel anti-tumor drug that targets eEF1A2), alone or in combination with other anti-tumor drugs, on bone cells and tumor progression.
- Internship Duties:
- Cell culture, molecular biology (PCR, qPCR, western blot), histomorphometry (counting of bone cells in bone sections), and analysis of bone mineral density and bone mass.