The Wnt/Beta-Catenin Pathway and Ewing sarcoma Metastasis
Background
Patients with metastatic Ewing sarcoma still have a dismal prognosis, even though advancements have been made in its treatment. It is unknown why some patients’ progress toward a metastatic disease, so therefore it is critical to understand what molecular mechanisms drive this metastasis in order to develop new therapeutic interventions. We have found a correlation between the activation of the Wnt/beta-catenin pathway and poor patient outcomes in Ewing sarcoma and demonstrated that this pathway, paradoxically, promotes metastasis. Metastatic cells are notoriously resilient and adaptive, which is why understanding interactions between tumor cells and their microenvironment will provide critical insights into mechanisms of Ewing sarcoma metastasis.
Project Goal
In this project, we are dissecting how Wnt/beta-catenin signaling alters tumor-tumor microenvironment crosstalk to promote metastasis. We aim to translate these studies by testing of a new clinically available inhibitor of Wnt/beta-catenin in pre-clinical in vitro models. Sydney Treichel will actively participate in performance of these tasks. In this way, she will gain a broad understanding of pre-clinical basic and translational research and how they can inform the development of biologically targeted therapeutic strategies for pediatric cancers.
Mentored by Dr. Elizabeth Lawlor
University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI
