2012 Free to Breathe Young Investigator Research Grant
Khaled Hassan, MD, MS
University of Michigan
Research Project:
EMT in Lung Cancer Cells
Summary:
During normal fetal development, certain cells participate in the Epithelial-Mesenchymal Transition (EMT), a process in which such cells undergo changes that allow them to transition to a new cell type and function and migrate to new locations. Normally, this transition is “turned off” after fetal development. However, in some cancerous cells, the EMT pathway can get “turned back on,” allowing these cells to invade normal tissues, overcome common signals telling the cells when they should die, and resist standard anti-tumor therapy. Dr. Hassan’s research aims to determine whether blocking a specific protein — the Notch protein — stops the activation of EMT in lung cancer cells. If blocking Notch proves effective, Dr. Hassan will investigate whether a Notch-targeting drug can make lung cancer cells more responsive to chemotherapy.