“Presentations this year were exceptionally good,” said Dr. Donna Cioffi, associate professor of biochemistry and molecular biology at the USA College of Medicine. “The topics included basic and translational science, as well clinical medicine. It was indeed exciting to see the outstanding work being done here at the USA College of Medicine and at the USA Mitchell Cancer Institute. It is something we can all be proud of.”
The forum consisted of two sessions. The morning session was comprised of nine oral presentations, and the afternoon session had 41 poster presentations.
Tyler Mattox, a basic medical science graduate student, won a $1,000 travel award for best overall graduate student presentation. “I plan to use the award to attend a cancer research conference, which would allow me to share our findings with the brightest minds in oncology research,” he said. “In addition to presenting my results, the exposure to cutting-edge projects from other institutions will allow me to return to USA with new ideas and collaborations to continue moving my project forward.”
His research was performed in oncologic sciences in the lab of Dr. Gary Piazza, chief of the Drug Discovery Research Center and Abraham A. Mitchell Distinguished Investigator and professor of oncologic sciences at USA Mitchell Cancer Institute.
Mattox said his project focuses on characterizing the mechanism of action of a novel anti-cancer compound DC070-547. “We found that DC070-547 potently and selectively inhibits the growth of pancreatic tumor cells that harbor a mutation in a RAS gene,” he said. “Mutations in RAS genes are known to drive aggressive and metastatic cancers such as pancreatic, lung and colorectal cancers. These tumors are notoriously resistant to conventional treatment options, and this resistance can often be attributed to a RAS mutation.”
After nearly 40 years of research in both academia and the pharmaceutical industry, Mattox said there are still no FDA-approved RAS inhibitors on the market. “My project presents a first-in-class RAS inhibitor that holds promise to be developed for the treatment of pancreatic cancer, along with other RAS-driven cancers,” he said.
The post-doctorate award was presented to Dr.Ward for his research on colorectal cancer tumor formation. According to Dr. Ward, colorectal cancer can develop from non-cancerous polyps – or abnormal tissue growth – found on the colon and have the potential to become cancerous over time if not properly removed or treated.
The goal of his research is to develop small molecule inhibitors that target specific mutations, or oncogenes, responsible for colorectal cancer progression. “One of these oncogenes responsible for colorectal cancer progression, β-catenin, is highly expressed in colorectal cancer due to a mutation of the APC/β-catenin gene. β-catenin expression has been correlated with colorectal cancers that also have high expression levels of the enzyme phophodieterase-10 (PDE10),” he said.
So far, Dr. Ward said PDE10 inhibitors have only been developed to treat central nervous system disorders. “Our lab has discovered for the first time that PDE10 is a target for colorectal cancer treatment and has developed a compound that is selective for PDE10 with greater potency than current PDE10 inhibitors that also exhibit anti-cancer properties by its effect on β-catenin cell signaling.”
Dr. Ward said his research has far-reaching potential to impact patient care. “The colorectal cancer burden is very high in the United States,” he said. “Therefore, developing and discovering a small molecule inhibitor that can one day be applied as a preventative or therapeutic drug for treating pre-cancerous colorectal polyps will greatly reduce cancer progression and overall colorectal cancer burden.”
Both Mattox and Dr. Ward agree that the annual Research Forum is beneficial for graduate students and postdoctoral fellows alike. “I am truly blessed to be a part of such a talented group of researchers at the USA Mitchell Cancer Institute,” Mattox said. “MCI has previously played a significant role in my life by aiding family and friends in their fights against cancer, and now I am fortunate to be conducting my dissertation research in the same building.”
To learn more about participating in the annual College of Medicine Research Forum, contact Dr. Cioffi at dlcioffi@southalabama.edu.
