About
Assistant Professor
Department of Bioengineering
UCLA
Project title: Tissue-engineered models of glioblastoma tumor invasion and recurrence
Project Description:
Glioblastoma (GBM) is a uniformly fatal brain cancer with poor response to treatment and high rates of recurrence. This proposal describes application of a tissue-engineered model of the interface between GBM and its associated microvessels for systematic characterization of the mechanisms by which peritumoral vasculature promote GBM cells to migrate away from primary tumors, eventually leading to tumor recurrence. We will investigate:
- The role of specific cues in the tumor microenvironment on the migratory phenotype of GBM cells using tissue-engineered platform for 3D culture.
- How these cues differentially affect distinct subpopulations of cells within heterogeneous tumors using single-cell RNA sequencing. Aim 1 will investigate effects of mechanical cues and Aim 2 effects of biochemical cues present in the microvessel niche on migratory function and phenotype of GBM cells.