Cancer Biology Program

Program Chair:

Dr. Brian Keith
453 BRB II/III
Phone: 215-746-5533
bkeith@mail.med.upenn.edu

Coordinator:

Kathy O'Connor-Cooley
Phone: 215-898-8935
kathyo@mail.med.upenn.edu

Dr. James Alwine
314 BRB II/III / 6160
Phone: 215-898-3256
alwine@mail.med.upenn.edu

James Alwine
Richard Assoian
Mike Atchinson
Frederic G. Barr
Craig H. Bassing
Gerd Blobel
David Boettiger
Garrett Brodeur
Marcia Brose
Eric J. Brown
Martin Carroll
Britton Chance
Christopher Chen
Jon Chernoff
Lewis Chodosh
Margaret Chou
Tom Curran
J. Alan Diehl
Joshua L. Dunaief
Wafik El-Deiry
Carolyn Felix
Jeffrey Field
Serge Fuchs
Donna George
Roger A. Greenberg
Mark I. Greene
Volker Haase
Meenhard Herlyn
Xianxin Hua
Qihong Huang
Brad Johnson
Kelly L. Jordan-Sciutto
Carl June
Gary D. Kao
Brian Keith
Ann Kennedy
Joe Kissil
Gary Koretzky
Constantinos Koumenis
Michael Lampson
William M. Lee
John P. Lynch
Carlo Maley
Michael May
Sarah Millar
Steve McMahon
Katherine (Kate) Nathanson
Yvonne Patterson
Warren S. Pear
Ellen Puré
Steven L. Reiner
Jim Riley
Erle S. Robertson
Anil Rustgi
Celeste Simon
Virginia Smith Shapiro
Ben Stanger
Andrei Thomas-Tikhonenko
Craig Thompson
Wei Tong
Robert Vonderheide
Xiaolu Yang

Contributing Faculty

Peter Nowell (Does not take students.)

Overview | Requirements | Courses

The Program in Cancer Biology provides students in the Cell and Molecular Biology Graduate Group an opportunity to undertake concentrated study of the basic biological processes that underlie the control of cell growth and metabolism and how these controls are abrogated during the initiation and progression of cancer. The program stresses the importance of fundamental genetic and molecular pathways regulating cell proliferation, differentiation, movement, and survival. Faculty members in the program have active research programs in the areas of oncogenesis, tumor suppressor genes, cell cycle control, apoptosis, tumor virology, angiogenesis, cell migration/metastasis, and cancer immunology. Opportunities to participate in research programs in cancer genetics and epidemiology are also available. In addition to individual faculty-led research programs, the Program in Cancer Biology sponsors a weekly work -in-progress seminar series in which students in the program present their current research. Students are also invited to weekly seminars in the Abramson Family Cancer Research Institute seminar series, and have the opportunity to meet visiting seminar speakers.

The program is designed to train students primarily interested in obtaining a PhD. Degree and hoping to pursue an academic research career or careers in biotechnology and related industries

Overview | Requirements | Courses

Required Courses:

• BIOM core courses,
• CAMB 605 (see Curriculum page), and
• CAMB 512 (Cancer Genetics and Biology)
• Any two additional Cancer Biology courses. These include:
CAMB 530: Seminar in Cell Cycle and Cancer
CAMB 632: Cell Control by Signal Transduction Pathways
CAMB 638: Advanced Seminar in Apoptosis
CAMB 650: DNA damage checkpoints and DNA repair
• Remaining course work will consist of electives chosen from any relevant CAMB (or BGS) offerings, depending on interest and background.

See Curriculum section of this site for more information on the CAMB graduate group's requirements and related topics.

Overview | Requirements | Courses

(Click on links for course descriptions below.)

CAMB 512: Cancer Genetics and Biology
CAMB 530: Seminar in Cell Cycle and Cancer
CAMB 632: Cell Control by Signal Transduction Pathways
CAMB 638: Advanced Seminar in Apoptosis
CAMB 650: DNA damage checkpoints and DNA repair

Suggested Elective Courses:

BMB 550: Molecular Mechanisms of Signal Transduction and Control
BMB 585: Wistar Institute Cancer Biology Course: Cell Cycle Checkpoints
CAMB 608: Regulation of Eukaryotic Gene Expression
CAMB 610: Molecular Basis of Gene Therapy
CAMB 631: Seminar in Cell Adhesion
PHRM 560: Principles of Cancer Pharmacology

CAMB 512: Cancer Genetics and Biology
2008 Syllabus
The course objective is to introduce the students to important and current concepts in Cancer Biology and Cancer Genetics and the lectures are organized into 4 broad thematic groups: a. Cell-Autonomous Mechanisms (e.g. tumor suppressor and oncogene function, DNA repair pathways, senescence, apoptosis), b. Non Cell-Autonomous Mechanisms (e.g., tumor microenvireonment, hypoxia, angiogenesis), c. Organ Systems (e.g. pancreatic cancer, hematopoetic malignancies) and d. Therapeutic Approaches (e.g. protein kinase inhibitors, immunotherapy, radiation therapy). The organizers along with faculty from the Medical School, the Wistar Institute and CHOP, with expertise in the corresponding areas teach the course. The students are expected to present and participate in discussions of one or more key recent papers at Journal Club that are held at the end of each thematic group. Offered spring semester. [up]

CAMB 530: Seminar in Cell Cycle and Cancer
This seminar course will focus on molecular events which regulate cell cycle transitions and their relevance to human cancer. Topics will include control of the G1/S and G2/M transitions, relationships between tumor suppressor genes such as p16, Rb, p53 or oncogenes such as cyclin D, cdc25A, MDM2 or c-myc and cell cycle control. Where appropriate, the focus will be on understanding regulation of cell cycle control through transcriptional induction of gene expression, protein associations, posttranslational modifications like phosphorylation or regulation of protein stability like ubiquitin degradation. Although achieving an improved understanding of mammalian cancer is a goal of the course, much of our knowledge of the cell cycle derives from work done in more genetically tractable organisms, such as yeasts, drosophila, and xenopus. Offered fall semester.[up]

CAMB 632: Cell Control by Signal Transduction Pathways
2008 Syllabus
This course, "Cell control by signal transduction pathways", will examine how various signal transduction mechanisms influence cell functions including replication, growth, transcription, translation and intracellular trafficking. The primary signal transduction pathways to be examined include those mediate by Notch, TGF-ß, TNF-a, Ras and Rho. We will also discuss intracellular signaling in response to DNA damage and explore in depth some of the key classes of enzymes involved in transmitting signals including kinases and phosphatases. In the first half of the course, invited faculty members will pick 2 relatively recent papers from their field that aren't necessarily definitive, but are interesting and could lead to new potential questions/areas for future investigation. Each paper will be assigned to a student, who will meet with the faculty mentor prior to the class to discuss the paper and their presentation. During the class, students will present each paper for approximately 45 minutes with time for discussion. Students will present the important background, break down the paper, look for strengths and weakness and come up with a plan of what the next set of experiments could or should be. In the second half of the course, students will independently pick a signal transduction paper for in-class presentation and will also write a short "News and Views" style article based on the paper they have chosen. The goal is that the course will lead students to think more about experimental design and interpretation rather than re-iteration of the biology they have learned as undergraduates. Offered spring semester. [up]

CAMB 638: Advanced Seminar in Apoptosis
The objective of this seminar course is to familiarize students with the pathways of cell death and cell survival in mammalian species as well as lower organisms. The course has a strong emphasis on cancer and clinical applications of the basic knowledge of signaling. Specific areas that are covered in detail include the history of apoptosis research leading to the Nobel Prize in Medicine in 2002, the structure, biochemical modifications and interactions that regulate death signaling in the cell intrinsic and extrinsic pathways, and include in vivo models that demonstrate physiological relevance. Additional emphasis is placed on understanding cell survival pathways including negative regulators of cell death and cross-talk with tumor suppressor and oncogene survival pathways. An effort is made each semester to include emerging topics including autophagy, ER stress signaling pathways and the impact of micro-RNAs as well as the tumor microenvironment on cell survival and cancer. There is a strong interest in therapeutic applications and future directions that are always part of the discussions and later in the course become the main focus of the discussions. Students are expected to read and to participate in the discussion of all assigned papers, and students are responsible for presenting the papers and leading discussions on a rotating basis. In addition students prepare a News & Views type of report on an additional topic of interest. Offered fall semester.[up]

CAMB 650: DNA Damage Checkpoints and DNA Repair
2008 Syllabus
DNA damage checkpoint and repair genes are important suppressors of cancer and aging. These processes function as part of a complex interconnected network of DNA recognition and processing, checkpoint signaling cascades and DNA repair. Because these processes preserve genome integrity, how they cooperate with one another is directly related to their ability to suppress cancer and aging. To study this emerging research area, students in CAMB 650 critically evaluate key research findings published in the last five years. In addition to providing an advanced understanding of DNA damage checkpoints, DNA repair and the connections of these processes with cancer and aging, this course is designed to allow students to gain experience in critiquing scientific literature both independently and through group discussion. Offered spring semester. [up]

Suggested Elective Courses:

Whereas any CAMB courses can be used to fulfill elective requirements (depending on the student's interests and background), the following courses are likely to be of particular relevance. Students will receive guidance from Cancer Biology leadership and faculty when choosing electives.

BMB 550: Molecular Mechanisms of Signal Transduction and Control
The biochemistry of receptors, GTP-binding proteins, effectors, second messengers, post-translational modification, etc. is examined with the aim of understanding how cellular signal-response cycles such as growth, secretion, electric activity, movement, etc. are controlled and how control may be lost. Principles of signaling systems analysis are developed and used together with kinetic, thermodynamic and specific molecular structure to understand the best mapped specific systems. Offered fall semester. [up]

BMB 585: Wistar Institute Cancer Biology Course: Cell Cycle Checkpoints
This course is intended to provide foundational information about the molecular basis of cancer. When necessary the significance of this information for clinical aspects of cancer is also discussed. The main theme centers around cell cycle checkpoints with specific emphasis on the biochemistry and genetics of DNA damage signaling pathways, DNA damage checkpoints, mitotic checkpoints and their relevance to human cancer. The organizers and guest lecturers from universities and research institutes in the Northeast teach the course. Offered spring semester. [up]

CAMB 608: Regulation of Eukaryotic Gene Expression
An advanced seminar course emphasizing the molecular biology and molecular genetics of transcription in eukaryotes. Based on current literature, the presentations and discussions will familiarize the student with present day technology and developing principles. Offered fall semester. [up]

CAMB 610: Molecular Basis of Gene Therapy
This is a team-taught, survey course that focuses on the basic science relevant to achieving efficient and effective gene transfer in animal models and humans for the treatment of disease. The course includes a unit devoted to a variety of vectors useful for gene transfer, with the remainder of the course devoted to the study of current gene therapy approaches using specific diseases as models. Prior background in biochemistry, cell biology, and molecular biology is essential. Aspects of organ system anatomy and physiology, virology and immunology that are relevant to the course material are included in the course. Because of the rapid movement in this field, specific topics vary somewhat from year to year. The course is designed for second year graduate students, however first year students may take the course with the course director's approval. Lecture format with discussion hours interspersed. There will be a take-home examination at the end of each of the three sections, each focusing on the material covered in that section. Offered fall semester. [up]