Is The Tumour Suppressor Activity Of P53 Independent Of Its Transcriptional Role?
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$162,920.00
Summary
To become cancerous, a cell must avoid death. As such, cancer cells often contain defects in cell death pathways which render them resistant to pro-death stimuli, including many chemotherapeutic drugs. To design new and better cancer therapies, it is essential that we understand the critical molecular processes that control cell death. This will allow the development of more effective ways to either reset, or bypass, defects in cell death pathways which have contributed to cancer formation.
Investigating Mitochondrial Outer Membrane Permeabilization During Programmed Cell Death
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$88,065.00
Summary
Cancer cells often contain defects which prevent their death. To kill cancer cells we must either reset or bypass these defects. Release of cytochrome c from mitochondria is a critical event in cell death and proteins that block this event render cells resistant to many cancer therapies. My research will determine how cytochrome c release occurs, how this event is regulated and how to kill cancer cells in which cytochrome c release is blocked.