Tom Curran
Professor, Dept of Pathology & Laboratory Medicine

Cancer Biology Program

Address

Room 517 ARC
3615 Civic Center Boulevard
Philadelphia, PA 19104

Office tel.: 267-426-2819
Fax: 267-426-2791
E-mail: currant@chop.edu

Link(s)

Dr. Curran's Stokes Institute page
Mousebrain Gene Expression Map

EDUCATION

University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, Scotland: B.Sc.(Zoology), 1978.

Imperial Cancer Research Fund Laboratories and University College London, London, UK: PhD (Zoology and Anatomy), 1982.

RESEARCH INTERESTS

Our research addresses the molecular basis of normal and neoplastic growth formation of the brain to uncover new approaches for the treatment of pediatric brain tumors.

Key words:oncogenes; reelin; brain tumors, sonic hedgehog

Search PubMed for articles

DESCRIPTION OF RESEARCH

Previously, we have identified the reelin gene (Reln) whose protein product is a large extracellular protein that controls cell migration and is secreted by several early populations of neurons in the developing brain. We are now examining the molecular events downstream of Reln that mediate its function. As part of the brain gene expression atlas project (GENSAT), we are also analyzing gene expression in the brain using high-throughput in situ hybridization.

We are taking genomic approaches to identify molecular changes and potential drug targets for several brain tumors including medulloblastoma, atypical teratoid/rhabdoid tumors and choroid plexus carcinomas. We developed a model system with a 100 percent incidence of spontaneous medulloblastoma for use in translational studies. Recently, we found that a small molecule inhibitor of the sonic hedgehog (Shh) pathway eliminated even large tumor masses in vivo. We are continuing to analyze the mechanism of action of several anticancer drugs in tumor cells and cancer models.

RECENT PUBLICATIONS

Sasi K, Romer JT, Lee Y, Finkelstein D, Fuller C, McKinnon PJ, Curran T. Shh pathway activity is down-regulated in cultured medulloblastoma cells: implications for preclinical studies.Cancer Res 66:4215-4222.

Romer JT, Kimura H, Magdaleno S, Sasai K, Fuller C, Baines H, Connelly M, Stewart CF, Gould S, Rubin LL, Curran T.; Suppression of the Shh pathway using a small molecule inhibitor eliminates medulloblastoma in Ptc1(+/-)p53(-/-) mice. Cancer Cell. 2004 Sep;6(3):229-40.

Magdaleno S, Jensen P, Brumwell CL, Seal A, Lehman K, Asbury A, Cheung T, Cornelius T, Batten DM, Eden C, Norland SM, Rice DS, Dosooye N, Shakya S, Mehta P, Curran T.; BGEM: an in situ hybridization database of gene expression in the embryonic and adult mouse nervous system. PLoS Biol. 2006 Apr;4(4):e86.

Park TJ, Boyd K, Curran T.; Cardiovascular and craniofacial defects in Crk-null mice Mol Cell Biol. 2006 Aug;26(16):6272-82.

Sasai K, Romer JT, Kimura H, Eberhart DE, Rice DS, Curran T: Medulloblastomas derived from Cxcr6 mutant mice respond to treatment with a Smoothened inhibitor Cancer Res 67:3871-7, 2007

Lab

ROTATION PROJECTS

Lab personnel:

Craig Brumwell, Ph.D.
Jessica Ng, Ph.D.
Tae-Ju Park, Ph.D.
Carol Dennis, Resource Coordinator
Kyle Beauchemin, Tech
Sara Campbell, Tech
Rebecca Cimildoro, Tech
Lara D’alessandro, Tech
Matthew Jennings, Tech
Lorraine Lovecchio, Tech
Christina Matticola, Tech
Eric McCusker, Tech
Kristy Walsh, Tech