Research

Our research focuses on molecular signaling pathways involved in breast cancer tumorigenesis and metastasis. We investigate interactions between signaling molecules and their effects on various cellular processes involved in tumorigenesis and metastasis including proliferation, transformation, epithelial-mesenchymal transition, invasion, and migration. To augment our investigations, we employ a diverse array of methodologies. In addition to conventional cellular and molecular biology techniques, we leverage novel microfluidic platforms that house 3D microenvironments. These platforms serve as invaluable tools for modeling the pre-metastatic niche, allowing us to explore the tissue-specific invasion patterns of breast cancer cells. Furthermore, we extend our research to incorporate mouse tissue on microfluidic platforms, modeling the liver as a distant metastatic site to investigate the invasion of cancer cells within a physiologically relevant context. In parallel, in order to develop personalized medicine tools, we are working on the development of novel platforms that can culture and asses the drug response of breast tumor samples.