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from clinicians and researchers
Our Mentors
Nathalie Y.R. Agar, MD
Neurosurgery, Brigham and Women's Hospital
Develops & validates mass spectrometry imaging methodologies to study neuro-oncology and guide the care of patients affected by brain cancer. Students will have the opportunity to image drug and metabolite transit through the blood-brain barrier in pre-clinical animal models and clinical trial patients treated with targeted therapy, with the goal of developing new brain-penetrating agents.
Kenneth C. Anderson, MD
Oncology, Brigham and Women's Hospital
Focuses on translational research in multiple myeloma. Students will have the opportunity to characterize factors in the marrow microenvironment which allow tumor cell homing, growth and resistance to apoptosis in the marrow millieu in order to identify and validate next-generation novel small molecule and immune targeted therapies.
Carla F. Kim, Ph.D.
Genetics, Boston Children's Hospital
The broad interest of the Kim Lab is to characterize the biology of stem cells in normal lung and lung cancer. Our long-term goal is to elucidate the role of stem cells in lung homeostasis as a prerequisite to the development of therapeutic strategies that can be used to prevent or attenuate lung disease.
Ross I Berbeco, PhD
Radiation Oncology, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute
Performs theoretical and experimental studies of systemically administered nanoparticles and their role in enhancing radiation therapy for cancer treatment. Students will have the opportunity to functionalize these particles with tumor-specific targeting moieties and study how this leads to localized disruption of the tumor vasculature.
Cesar M. Castro, MD
Director, Cancer Program - MGH Center for Systems Biology
Bridges current needs in clinical oncology with novel nanosensing technologies to selectively detect and profile cancer cells and tissues. Students will examine the feasibility of using magneto-DNA nanoparticles to characterize rare cancer cells in unpurified human clinical samples including ascites and blood.
Ciprian Catana, MD, PhD
Radiology, MGH
Seeks to improve the quantification of the PET data using the simultaneously acquired MR information in integrated MR-PET scanners. Students will have the opportunity to use advanced MR-PET methods to study the delivery, mechanism of action and effects of therapeutic agents in cancer patients.
Yolonda Colson, MD
Thoracic Surgery, MGH
Focuses on approaches to re-educate the recipient immune system for the induction of permanent donor-specific tolerance while maintaining recipient immunocompetence. Other active research interests are involved in the study of the role of innate immunity in chronic rejection of human lung allografts and local therapies for the treatment of lung cancer.
James A. DeCaprio, MD
Medical Oncology, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute
Studies host cell proteins that interact with polyoma virus oncoproteins using targeted mouse models. Students will study host perturbations following the systemic administration of synthetic viral nano-complexes in order to identify novel tumor suppressors and oncogenes in Merkel cell carcinoma.
Marcia Haigis Ph.D.
Cell Biology, Harvard Medical School
Identifies molecular mechanisms by which mitochondria respond to cellular stress and elucidates how these cellular mechanisms contribute to aging and age-related diseases, such as cancer.
Georges El Fakhri, PhD
Director, Gordon Center for Medical Imaging, MGH
Pioneers novel approaches and contrast agents for quantitative multi-modal imaging. Students will use quantitative methods to characterize and optimize the analysis of experimental nanoparticle-based imaging agents used in vivo.
Dai Fukumura, MD, PhD
Deputy Director, Edwin L. Steele Laboratory, MGH
Studies host-tumor interaction in angiogenesis, vascular function, tumor growth, and response to treatment. Students will combine intravital microscopy and fluorescent gene reporter systems to develop novel anti-tumor therapies.
Irene M. Ghobrial, MD
Medical Oncology, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute
Focuses on identifying mechanisms of Multiple Myeloma progression, including autonomous cells and those dependent on the bone marrow niche. We examine genetic and epigenetic alterations that regulate tumor dissemination and the role of the bone marrow niche in disease progression from early precursor stages to active Multiple Myeloma.
William C. Hahn, MD, PhD
Chief Operating Officer, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute
Studies cooperative genetic alterations that program malignant transformation and develops experimental model systems to study specific genetic alterations. Students will use therapeutic tumor-penetrating siRNA nanocomplexes to identify, validate, and understand potential therapeutic cancer.
Mukesh Harisinghani, MD
Director, Abdominal MRI, MGH
We develop magnetic nanoparticle-based platforms for use as magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) contrast agents in cancer diagnosis. Students will have the opportunity to study nanoparticle-enhanced MRI data from clinical trials in order to improve the detection of lymph node metastases.
Tayyaba Hasan, PhD
Professor of Dermatology, MGH
Develops novel targeted therapeutic agents for the photodynamic therapy of cancer, infections, and infectious disease through site-directed photochemistry. Students will participate in the design and testing of photoactivatable nanoparticles for the treatment of ovarian, prostate, pancreatic, or head and neck cancer.
Rani E. George, MD, PhD
Professor of Pediatrics, Harvard Medical School
Our laboratory is focused on studying neuroblastoma, an embryonically derived pediatric tumor of the peripheral sympathetic nervous system. We are interested in the following general areas: 1) identifying molecular targets that can be translated into novel therapies in metastatic neuroblastoma, and 2) unraveling the genetic perturbations that occur during development of the sympathetic nervous system and underlie neuroblastoma initiation and progression.
Kimberly Stegmaier, MD
Pediatric Oncology, Dana Farber Cancer Institute
Dr. Stegmaier’s laboratory integrates chemical biology, genomic, and proteomic approaches to discover new lead compounds and protein targets for cancer therapy. She has focused her efforts on the acute leukemias and two pediatric solid tumors of childhood: Ewing sarcoma and neuroblastoma.
Judy Lieberman, MD, PhD
Cellular and Molecular Medicine, Boston Children’s Hospital
Studies how RNA interference regulates and dysregulates cell differentiation in order to develop new drugs to treat or prevent cancer. Students will characterize anti-cancer therapeutics comprised of membrane-anchored lipoproteins that are incorporated into siRNA-loaded lipid nanoparticles.
Umar Mahmood, MD, PhD
Radiology, MGH
Develops molecular imaging tools for cancer treatment and treatment monitoring. Students will have the opportunity to create and validate new imaging probes, develop cell and animal models with clinically relevant pathologies, and aid in the clinical translation of successful technologies.
G. Mike Makrigiorgos, PhD
Radiation Oncology, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute
Applies nanoparticle-based approaches for DNA molecular diagnostics, PCR-based detection of DNA alterations, as well as the enrichment and identification of cancer biomarkers from blood-circulating DNA/RNA. We also combine site-specific image-guided irradiation with nanoparticle based approaches for enhancing detection of circulating biomarkers via ‘liquid biopsy’.
Nathan McDannold, PhD
Radiology, Brigham And Women's Hospital
Develops drug delivery strategies that utilize focused-ultrasound and microbubbles to increase the permeability of the blood-brain barrier. Students will assess and optimize chemotherapy delivery and drug retention following ultrasound-induced brain tumor permeability enhancement.
Zdravka Medarova, PhD
Neuroimaging, MGH
Develops and tests multi-functional imaging and delivery vehicles for combined cancer imaging and therapy. More recently, our lab developed magnetic nanoparticles as delivery vehicles of miRNA-targeted therapy to breast tumors.
Joan S. Brugge PhD
Cell Biology, Harvard Medical School
The Brugge laboratory is investigating the cellular processes and pathways that are involved in normal morphogenesis of epithelial tissues as well as those involved in the initiation and progression of epithelial tumors.
Jean J. Zhao, PhD
Biological Chemistry & Molecular Pharmacology, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute
Investigating the molecular mechanisms underlying cancer initiation, progression, recurrence and metastasis, with the ultimate goal of developing safe and effective therapies for treating cancer patients.
Jinjun Shi, PhD
Anaesthesia, Brigham and Women's Hospital
Our lab has extensive experience in the research fields of nanomedicine and biomaterials, and has developed many multifunctional nanoparticle platforms for the delivery of therapeutic small molecules, proteins and nucleic acids.
Timothy A. Springer, PhD
Pathology, Boston Children's Hospital
Studies receptor-ligand interactions and transmembrane signaling, with the goal of improving receptor-specific therapeutics for cancer. Students will investigate how integrins and TGF-β1 can be utilized as potential immuno-oncology targets.
Srinivas Sridhar, PhD
Physics, Northeastern University
Specializes in the development of nanoplatforms for cancer drug delivery and multi-modal contrast agents for simultaneous clinical imaging. Students will explore how multi-functional nanoparticles can offer potential benefits in wide range of applications such as in sensing, diagnostics, drug delivery, and image enhancement.
Nada Y. Kalaany, PhD
Pediatrics, Boston Children's Hospital
Investigating the correlation between systemic metabolism and cancer incidence and progression, with the goal of identifying metabolic dependencies that could be targeted therapeutically in cancer patients.
Ralph Weissleder, MD, PhD
Radiology, MGH
Applies novel imaging and sensing techniques to measure major protein and network hubs of interest in a quantitative and predictive manner. Students will combine advanced microscopic imaging with systemically injectable nanoparticle-based sensors to perform quantitative single cell analysis of cancers during drug treatments in vivo.
Catherine J. Wu, MD
Medicine, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute
Identifies novel immune targets for immune-based therapy of hematologic malignancies. Students will have opportunity to develop and test nanoparticle-based vaccines, alone and in combination with other immunotherapies for cancer treatment.
Priscilla K. Brastianos, MD
Hematology, Oncology, Massachusetts General Hospital
Our overarching objective is to characterize the tumor and immune microenvironment in primary brain tumors and brain metastases, and accelerate the development of novel therapeutic approaches for these diseases.
Jennifer Brown, MD, PhD
Hematology and Oncology, Dana Farber Cancer Institute
Development of idelalisib and ibrutinib, leading to regulatory approvals in CLL. Characterized of the somatic mutation profile of CLL, and implementation of genomic technology in the clinic.
Myles Brown, MD
Director, Center for Functional Cancer Epigenetics Dana-Farber Cancer Institute
Focuses on elucidating the epigenetic factors underlying the action of steroid hormones. This work has important implications both for normal physiology and for the treatment of hormone dependent malignancies including breast and prostate cancer. He is recognized for three seminal discoveries. His lab opened the steroid receptor coregulator field, illuminated the dynamic nature of receptor and coregulator interaction with the genome and elucidated the importance of epigenetically determined distant cis-regulatory steroid receptor binding sites. His contributions have uniquely reformulated the understanding of steroid hormone action in normal physiology and in hormone-dependent cancer.
Kathleen H. Burns MD, PhD
Pathology, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute
The majority of our genome is highly repetitive sequence derived from the activities of self-propagating retrotransposons. My research focuses on roles these mobile genetic elements play in human disease. Despite their enormous impact on genome composition over evolutionary time and across virtually all eukaryotic taxa, transposons are often presumed to be inert, non-functional ‘junk DNA’, and I am one of few physician-scientists bridging this area of fundamental biology with biomedical research.
Anna Krichevsky, PhD
Neurology/Neurobiology, Brigham and Women's Hospital
The work in the laboratory focuses on small regulatory RNA molecules, microRNAs, their role in brain tumors, and potential as novel therapeutic targets and biomarkers. We are also interested in the RNA-mediated intracellular communication between brain tumors and normal cells of their microenvironment. Our overall goal is to develop basic RNA research toward a cure for glioblastoma (GBM) and other brain tumors.
Kornelia Polyak, MD, PhD
Professor of Medicine, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute
The three main areas of our interests are: (1) how to accurately predict breast cancer risk and prevent breast cancer initiation or progression from in situ to invasive disease, (2) better understand drivers of tumor evolution with special emphasis on metastatic progression and therapeutic resistance, and (3) novel therapeutic targets in breast cancer with particular focus on “bad” cancers such as triple negative breast cancer and inflammatory breast cancer.
David E. Avigan, MD
Hematology and Oncology, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center
My research interest lies in the field of tumor immunotherapy and its incorporation into bone marrow transplantation.
Marcela V. Maus, MD, PhD
Hematology and Oncology, Massachusetts General Hospital
The goal of the Maus lab is to design and evaluate next generation genetically-modified (CAR) T cells as immunotherapy in patients with cancer.
Arlene H. Sharpe, MD, PhD
Immunology, Harvard Medical School
The Sharpe laboratory investigates T cell costimulatory pathways and their immunoregulatory functions. We focus on the roles of these pathways in regulating pathogenic and protective immune responses needed for the induction and maintenance of T cell tolerance and the prevention of autoimmunity, as well as effective antimicrobial and antitumor immunity.
Xandra O. Breakefield, PhD
Neurology and Radiology, Massachusetts General Hospital
Our laboratory focuses on understanding genetic mechanisms underlying diseases of the nervous system and developing therapies and biomarkers for these diseases. Longstanding work has focused on genes causing movement disorders, including early onset torsion dystonia (DYT1) and X-linked dystonia parkinsonism (XDP).
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