Programs

Collaboration

Exploring this revolutionary realm of medicine requires integration and cross-functional teamwork. As part of the University of Michigan Medical School and theU-M Health System, the MCTP collaborates with:

Our world-class faculty, professional staff and graduate students are from diverse disciplines including medicine, pathology, bioinformatics, biostatistics, engineering, cytogenetics and molecular therapeutics.

Our multidisciplinary approach is integral to move research into real-world practice.

Cancer: Gene Fusion

The next step in our fight against cancer is to develop better diagnostic tests and to design targeted drugs that are more effective and have fewer toxic side effects. Cancer is a genomic disease and occurs when the genetic program of a cell goes askew. Understanding the molecular components of cancer is instrumental in designing treatments based on the underlying causes of cancer rather than simply treating the symptoms of the disease. The signature project of the MCTP is to launch a new effort to comprehensively and systematically understand the molecular basis of cancer and analyze tumors of different cellular origin in order to chart repeating gene rearrangements or gene fusions.

Prostate cancer is the most common form of cancer in American men. More than 230,000 men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer this year, and 30,000 will die from the disease in the U.S. alone. In 2005, Arul Chinnaiyan, M.D., Ph.D., director of the MCTP, and his team, made the landmark discovery that prostate cancer harbors gene fusions that may be the cause of this highly prevalent disease. Using a computational approach to identify cancer-causing genes from DNA microarray data, they discovered that seqments of two chromosones trade places with each other. This switch, or translocation, causes two unrelated genes to now be next to each other and to fuse together. These testosterone-regulated genes called TMPRSS2 were found to be fused to a family of cancer-causing genes called ETS factors. Fusing of these genes likely causes the development of prostate cancer.

Previous to this extraordinary discovery, it was thought that gene fusions only cause cancers in leukemias and lymphomas, but not in common solid tumors such as prostate cancer. In 2005, Dr. Chinnaiyan was awarded the prestigious Castleman Prize by the International Academy of Pathology for the most important discovery in the field of pathology. He and his team are working on ways to take advantage of this world-class finding to help in the diagnosis, prognosis and treatment of men with prostate cancer. They also are working to extend these findings into other common solid tumors including cancer of the breast, lung, colon and skin.

Biomarkers

Recently, our investigators used microarray technology to understand characteristics of autoantibody signatures, or biomarkers, that may be useful in the detection of prostate cancer. Antibodies are produced in response to a foreign protein or substance within the body, typically an infectious organism. Utilizing the body’s own immune system’s ability to detect cancer, researchers are working to develop better diagnostic and prognostic tests to assess cancer more accurately in patients.

The standard PSA test to detect prostate cancer is non-specific with many false positive results that can lead to unnecessary and invasive biopsies. PSA measures prostate cell activity as opposed to prostate cancer activity. While it is easy to measure a rise in activity, it does not always correlate to prostate cancer or effectiveness of treatment. Consequently, MCTP investigators are developing a more specific and less invasive diagnostic test using biomarkers found in blood or urine that will detect the presence of prostate cancer, calculate the progress of the disease and assess the effects of a particular treatment. MCTP also will focus on extending this biomarker research to many different cancers as well as other human diseases.

Metabolomics

Several Michigan Center for Translational Pathology are dedicated to examining metabolic disease. The underlying causes of diseases based on the body’s metabolism are still relatively unknown. Understanding the molecular basis of these diseases, which include cardiovascular disease, obesity and diabetes, may lead investigators to new preventive measures and treatments.

Bioinformatics

Molecular medicine relies on the ability to obtain, store and analyze immense data sets to advance research. Physicians, scientists and software engineers at the University of Michigan developed “Oncomine.org,” a database resource on the web for examining gene expression in cancer for use throughout the global scientific community. The goal of the project is to collect, standardize, analyze and deliver published cancer gene expression data to researchers around the world. This database allows scientists to probe the expression of a gene across thousands of cancer samples or explore genes, processes and pathways deregulated in a particular type of cancer. Oncomine pre-computes cancer profiles, clusters and gene set modules so researchers can focus on discovery. It is used around the world by cancer researchers and has been cited in dozens of scientific journals.

The next phase, which we’ve designated as the Molecular Concept Map, builds upon Oncomine.org. The focus of the project is on biological concepts that are represented by molecular signatures beyond cancer and gene expression. Our goal is to create a central resource for scientists that will link publications, associations and discoveries throughout the world. It will be the first database if its kind to comprehensively examine human disease from a global perspective.

Future Patient Care

 

CLIA-Certified Molecular Testing Lab

A Clinical Laboratory Improvement Amendments-certified lab is a nationally approved lab that is engaged in diagnostic tests. Our laboratory's goal is to introduce and test emerging molecular diagnostic and bioinformatics approaches developed by MCTP (or adapted from the larger scientific community). This laboratory functions as a way to evaluate new emerging molecular tests rapidly. MCTP also has the ability to partner with commercial entities in addition to the medical community and will be able to introduce new tests to patients at a very early stage.

Please note that this service is not currently available to patients. To accelerate our ability to provide this service, please visit our Giving page. For information on the best treatments available, please visit the U-M Comprehensive Cancer Center's Cancer AnswerLine Web site or call 800-865-1125.

Molecular Therapeutics Lab

The Molecular Therapeutics Lab focuses on developing targeted therapies identified by the molecular approach to the study of genes and proteins. Scientists in this lab translate these discoveries with the goal of developing new and more effective therapies for patient care.

Please note that this service is not currently available to patients. To accelerate our ability to provide this service, please visit our Giving page. For information on the best treatments that are currently available, please visit the U-M Comprehensive Cancer Center's Cancer AnswerLine Web site or call 800-865-1125.