News Details
NCCN Member Institution Receives $8.95 Million Drug Discovery Grant from NCI
Tampa, FL (May 16, 2007) – The H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center & Research Institute has been awarded an $8.95 million grant from the National Cancer Institute. The long-term goal of research being conducted through the grant is the discovery of novel drugs for the treatment of cancer based on disrupting aberrant signal transductions circuits in human tumors.
“At this time in history, a project of this caliber is considered a monumental accomplishment,” said Said Sebti, Ph.D., program leader of the Drug Discovery Program and principal investigator on the grant.
The five year grant will cover five projects and three cores or shared facilities. The cores include administration overseen by Sebti, high throughput drug screening overseen by Wayne Guida, Ph.D. and chemistry, overseen by Harshani Lawrence, Ph.D. Each of the five projects is lead by two researchers: a biologist and a chemist.
- Jiandong Chen, Ph.D. and Mark McLaughlin, Ph.D. will develop small molecules to disrupt mdmx binding to p53
- Srikumar Chellappan, Ph.D. and Nicholas Lawrence, Ph.D. will identify Raf/Rb association inhibitors
- Said Sebti, Ph.D. and Mark McLaughlin, Ph.D. will develop proteasome antagonists
- Hong-Gang Wang, Ph.D. and Mark McLaughlin, Ph.D. will identify Bcl family antagonists
- Jerry Wu, Ph.D. and Nicholas Lawrence, Ph.D. will develop SHP2 phosphatase inhibitors
The project’s central hypothesis is that disruption of these circuits will induce apoptosis (cell death) and inhibit malignant transformation.
Researchers will work to develop drugs that will help break down the hallmarks of cancer which include: uncontrolled cell division, resistance to tumor apoptosis, invasion and metastasization and angiogenesis, the formation of new blood vessels, especially blood vessels that supply oxygen and nutrients to cancerous tissue.
About H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center & Research Institute
Located in Tampa, Florida on the University of South Florida campus, H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center & Research Institute (www.moffitt.org) is the only Florida-based cancer center with the NCI designation as a Comprehensive Cancer Center for its excellence in research and contributions to clinical trials, prevention and cancer control. Moffitt currently has 15 affiliates in Florida, one in Georgia and two in Puerto Rico. Additionally, Moffitt is a member of the National Comprehensive Cancer Network, a prestigious alliance of the country’s leading cancer centers, and is listed in U.S. News & World Report as one of America’s Best Hospitals for cancer. Moffitt’s sole mission is to contribute to the prevention and cure of cancer.
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Michelle Foley
Public Information Officer
H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center & Research Institute
12902 Magnolia Dr., MBC-PR
Tampa, FL 33612-9497
Ph: (813) 745-1505
Cell: (813) 484-1237
Fax: (813) 745-1380
Michelle.Foley@moffitt.org (NOTE NEW E-MAIL)
www.moffitt.org