2011 UALC
Naveen Kommajosyula, PhD
Dana-Farber Cancer Institute
Research Project:
PARP Inhibition in Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer
Summary:
Many chemotherapies work by inducing DNA damage in cancer cells; however, many cancer cells have overactive DNA repair systems to compensate. Dr. Kommajosyula is investigating a PARP1, a protein critically involved in DNA damage repair, as a therapeutic target for NSCLC. He will screen a number of NSCLC cells lines for sensitivity to PARP inhibitors, either alone or in combination with other drugs attaching the same pathway. The ultimate goal of the project is to demonstrate that PARP inhibitors will be useful in subsets of NSCLC, and add another molecular therapy against this disease.
More Content:
Interim Report
Dr. Kommajosyula’s work has identified that lung cancer cells can be sensitive to treatment with a PARP inhibitor, and have identified a potential biomarker of activity. Using this information, trials of PARP inhibitors in NSCLC can be designed tailored to patients most likely to respond. Further development of combination therapies has the potential to broaden the use of PARP inhibitors to other types of lung tumors. Additional data may justify the initiation of a Phase 1 trial exploring this combination.