Molecular basis of cancer invasion and metastasis

Invasion and metastasis are methods used by cancer to claim lives. Elucidation of the molecular basis of these complex processes is therefore of enormous interest in both basic and applied research. To this end, we established a highly metastatic human lung cancer subline, NCI-H46-LNM35, which exhibits extremely high and consistent metastasis via both hematogenous and lymphogenous routes, and has proven its value in such studies. Our laboratory also identified two previously unappreciated molecules, CLCP1 and CIM, as involved in cancer invasion and metastasis, through transcriptome and proteome analyses, respectively. Currently, we are pursuing molecular and cellular biologic dissection of the functional roles of these proteins in invasion and metastasis by utilizing one of our strengths, global profiling analysis. In addition, our efforts with advanced proteomics techniques are also focused on identification of novel therapeutic molecular targets, especially kinases and cell surface receptors.