Speaker:
Title:
Enhancing the CRISPR-Cas Genome Engineering Toolbox
Abstract:
Targeted genome editing using microbial CRISPR-Cas systems has
enabled a broad range of applications in research and medicine. However,
naturally-occurring Cas enzymes that have been harnessed for use in
eukaryotic cells have a number of significant drawbacks, including the
potential for off-target DNA mutagenesis or a restricted targeting range.
This talk explores some recent developments in the use of structure-guided
and directed evolution-based protein engineering of Cas enzymes as a novel
method to address these concerns.
Speaker:
Title:
Environment-mediated Drug resistance Mechanisms in the Liver Tumor Microenvironment
Abstract:
Human cancers in vivo do not exist as homogeneous collections
of cancer cells, but rather as heterocellular systems containing a mixture of
cell types that form the tumor microenvironment (TME). Interactions between
cancer cells and the TME have been shown to alter the response to
chemotherapeutics by activating pro-survival signaling pathways. The goal of
this work is to identify specific molecular and cellular components of the
liver microenvironment, a common site of breast cancer metastasis, that
contribute to chemotherapeutic resistance.