Cancer is a complex disease where a few genetic mutations can start a program of uncontrolled cellular growth. While mutations define cancer predisposition, the proteins are responsible for setting and sustaining energy metabolism in developing tumors, evading the immune response, and allowing escape of organ boundaries to establish metastases throughout the body. No cancer has been completely cured by fixing an originating gene mutation - the therapeutics have to target evolving oncogenic alterations in proteomic and metabolomic processes. It is now clear that only comprehensive proteogenomic and metabolomic characterization of individual tumors could fully explain why some drugs will prove...

Read More

Cancer is a complex disease where a few genetic mutations can start a program of uncontrolled cellular growth. While mutations define cancer predisposition, the proteins are responsible for setting and sustaining energy metabolism in developing tumors, evading the immune response, and allowing escape of organ boundaries to establish metastases throughout the body. No cancer has been completely cured by fixing an originating gene mutation - the therapeutics have to target evolving oncogenic alterations in proteomic and metabolomic processes. It is now clear that only comprehensive proteogenomic and metabolomic characterization of individual tumors could fully explain why some drugs will prove effective for any particular case and others will not. Baylor College of Medicine has built a strong collaborative network of scientists and clinicians with an arsenal of patient-derived tumor models and patient sample collections to affect transformational translational research. Our core will facilitate comprehensive multiomic studies in preclinical models and clinical tumor specimens, providing BCM cancer researchers with access to cutting-edge proteomics and metabolomics technologies and computational expertise. With this integrated approach, we aim to pinpoint avenues for development of new treatment regimens to overcome drug resistance, substitute generic chemotherapies with specific low toxicity targeted treatments, and ultimately improve disease maintenance with molecular diagnostic tools. Mirroring significant recent improvements in experimental instrumentation and informatics tools, we will continue to diversify our technological platforms, developing assays that push the limits of protein and metabolite detection. The productivity of the Core Facility will be measured by publications from our users, new cancer-related research grants to user laboratories, contributions of new methodologies, and discoveries that lead to development of novel therapeutic strategies.

Read Less