Cancer Stem Cell Lab      Lab Members      Publications      Openings CV (pdf) Courses

Assistant Professor Department of Biological Sciences, Purdue University Purdue Center for Cancer Research Oncological Sciences Center at Discovery Park Interdisciplinary Life Science Ph.D. Program (PULSe) Snail Mail:   201 S. University Street                   West Lafayette, IN 47907 Office:        Hansen Life Sciences Research Building                   HANS 235A Lab:            HANS 235/237 Phone:        (765) 494-2843 Fax:            (765) 496-1496 Email:         jkirshne at purdue dot edu

Courses

BIOL 53700, Immunobiology, Spring 2010.



Research Interests

Strong evidence in support of the cancer stem cell theory has been steadily accumulating over the last decade. In addition to tumorigenic potential, cancer stem cells possess characteristics of normal stem cells including proliferative quiescence, self-renewal potential, and multipotency. Upon receiving proliferation signal(s) from the microenvironment, a cancer stem cells switch their program from quiescence to differentiation/proliferation, initiating tumor growth. Patients suffering from both hematological maligancies and solid tumors often see their disease relapse due to the inability of the currently used therapies to target successfully cancer stem cells. Thus, determining which characteristics of the cancer stem cells can be therapeutically exploited is of utmost importance. My laboratory studies the properties of cancer stem cells using two model systems: multiple myeloma, a cancer of the bone marrow, and breast cancer, representing hematological and solid malignancies respectively.


      

Tumors are formed when quescent cancer stems receive signals from the microenvironment to start differentiating and proliferating.  Likely, this happens during asymetric self-renewal where one daughter cell differentiates into a tumor projenitor and the other maintains its stem cell phenotype.  When the patient receives anti-cancer therapy, the tumor cells are killed, however, cancer stem cells are resistant to most currently used treatments, and thus, these cells remain and contribute to tumor relapse.  Therefore, the cycle of tumorigenesis persists, and will persist until we design therapies which can eliminate cancer stem cells.


The long-term research objectives of my laboratory are to investigate the fundamental questions in cancer stem cell biology. What is the role of microenvironment in maintaining the balance between self-renewal and differentiation of cancer stem cells?  Answering this question will provide information on how to keep the cancer stem cell from initiating tumors and their re-growth.  What characteristics of cancer stem cells make them different from the normal tissue stem cells?  Identifying the unique properties of cancer stem cells can be exploited therapeutically to target tumor-initiating cells. Are all cancer stem cells are created equal, i.e. whether a drug designed to kill the multiple myeloma cancer stem cell could also kill a breast cancer stem cell?  If the hypothesis that cancer stem cells from different tissues share similar characteristics is validated, it will revolutionize the current thinking about cancer, implying that generative compartments of different tumors may share common characteristics, raising the possibility that one drug or group of drugs can be used to cure multiple malignancies. The working hypothesis is that cancer stem cells are found in a specialized microenvironment niche which keeps the cells in a non-proliferative state. Altering the conditions in favor of differentiation and proliferation leads to tumor re-growth.  Please visit the Cancer Stem Cell Lab website for more information on what we are currently working on.



Education

2003      Ph.D.      Molecular and Cell Biology              City of Hope Graduate School of Biological Sciences

1998      B.S.        Genetics (minor in Psychology)       University of California, Davis



My World Outside the Lab

My partner in crime, Sergey

Our little tot, Ellie

Our furry bum, Checkers







Last modified: November 14, 2009