NIH AWARDS $8.4 MILLION GRANT TO THE CLEVELAND CLINIC'S LERNER RESEARCH INSTITUTE FOR CANCER STUDIES
The National Institutes of Health has granted $8.24 million to a team of Lerner Research Institute scientists led by Chairman George Stark, Ph.D., for continued studies on cellular defenses against cancer. It is one of the largest single research grants ever awarded to the Lerner Research Institute.
The five-year grant to investigate "Interferons and Cytokines - Signaling and Action" will support six research programs in the departments of Molecular Biology, Cancer Biology, Neurosciences and Immunology at the Lerner Research Institute.
The six research programs approach various aspects of how cells use interferon and cytokine-regulated systems to control gene expression in human cells. Interferons are proteins produced by cells in the human body, and they function in the first line of defense against viral infections and the immune response against diseases such as cancer.
Among the aspects of interferon regulated cell biology to be investigated include:
* cloning and identifying proteins that take part in the signal transmission from cell membrane interferon receptors to target genes in the cell's nucleus;
* determining the function of interferon system proteins in fighting diseases such as cancer and viral infection; and
* unraveling the intricate labyrinth of signaling pathways activated by interferons to initiate the production of proteins from specific interferon-target genes.
The research programs are being led by Dr. Stark; Thomas Hamilton, Ph.D.; Bryan Williams, Ph.D.; Richard Ransohoff, M.D.; Robert Silverman, Ph.D.; and Ganes Sen, Ph.D.
While the scope of the research to be conducted with funds from this grant are aimed at basic cell and molecular biology discovery, the benefits to medical care through the development of improved technologies holds great promise.
"When we build upon the very basic elements of understanding mechanisms that regulate normal biology, we gain insight into pathologies where normal biology has gone wrong," Dr. Hamilton said. "By accumulating information about basic systems in biology, we may learn in broad ways about strategies to manipulate those systems. When we understand more completely how interferons or other cytokines work in normal cells, and then look at where that deviates in cancer cells, we are able to identify potential areas for therapeutic development."
"By defining the most basic components of these complex cellular interactions, we are more likely to find ways to enhance the anti-tumor effect of the interferon," Dr. Hamilton said.
The Cleveland Clinic Foundation, founded in 1921, integrates clinical and hospital care with research and education in a private, non-profit group practice. At the Cleveland Clinic and Cleveland Clinic Florida in 1998, nearly 1,000 full-time salaried physicians representing more than 100 medical specialities and subspecialties provided for 1,735,484 outpatient visits and 49,893 hospital admissions for patients from throughout the United States and more than 80 countries. In 1997, The Cleveland Clinic Health System - comprising The Cleveland Clinic Foundation, the Ashtabula County Medical Center, Health Hill Hospital for Children, Euclid, Fairview, Hillcrest, Huron, Lakewood, Lutheran, Marymount and South Pointe hospitals - was formed. With 2,957 staffed beds, the Cleveland Clinic Health System offers broad geographic coverage, a full continuum of care, improved quality and lower cost of care to Northeast Ohio residents.
The Cleveland Clinic's website address is: http://www.clevelandclinic.org
Contact: Rob Whitehouse, 216/444-8927 [email protected] or
Jim Armstrong, 216/444-9455
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