Cancer Biology T-32 Training Grant
For additional information about the program or the application process, please contact:
Leanne Simington, MS
Program Specialist
University of Maryland School of Medicine
Marlene and Stewart Greenebaum Cancer Center
BRB 9-002
410 706-8358
lsimington@som.umaryland.edu
Toni M. Antalis, Ph.D.
Co-Director
Professor of Physiology,
University of Maryland School of Medicine
410 706-8222
tantalis@som.umaryland.edu
Curt I. Civin, M.D.
Co-Director
Associate Dean for Research,
University of Maryland School of Medicine
410 706-1198/1181
ccivin@som.umaryland.edu
Guidelines and Application 2020
The Cancer Biology T32 Training Program at the University of Maryland is a prestigious program designed to train predoctoral students and postdoctoral fellows in fundamental mechanisms of cancer biology at the molecular, cellular and organism levels. The program takes advantage of the multidisciplinary and highly interactive research environment within the University of Maryland Greenebaum Cancer Center and at the University of Maryland Baltimore campus to provide outstanding training in critical areas of basic and translational cancer research. A guiding philosophy is that Cancer Biology T32 training program must provide integrative activities that illuminate the inter-relatedness of basic cancer research and clinical medicine. Support for the program has been provided from a training grant from the NIH National Cancer Institute.
To be considered for a position on this training grant, the trainee should identify a faculty mentor and develop a research plan in conjunction with the mentor to be submitted with the application.
The award of a trainee slot on this grant is for a 1 year period, and is renewable by competitive application for a 2nd and possibly a 3rd year. Each year involves a competitive renewal with no greater assurance of funding for ongoing applicants than for new applicants. T32 supported trainees and mentors are strongly encouraged to apply for individual competitive fellowships or for other cancer research grant support during their 1st or 2nd year in the program. All predoctoral and postdoctoral fellows supported by the Cancer Biology T32 training program will be encouraged to participate in didactic components, interactive seminars and workshops, and professional development to appropriate to their background, in order to provide a solid foundation for a long term and successful career in cancer research.
The levels of funding support from the T32 grant are mandated by NIH guidelines (http://www.cancer.gov/researchandfunding/cancertraining/funding/T32). As appropriate, salary may be supplemented from other single or combined sources, such as research grants, professional fees, etc. Health insurance and support for travel is provided. For M.D. trainees, support from the T32 Training Program provides ‘protected time’ for immersion in the laboratory and it is required that patient care responsibilities will be limited to <10% effort (one half day per week), primarily to help complete long-term patient care experience necessary for their subspecialities and to maintain patient-care skills.
Qualifications for Trainee Slots:
• All appointments to this training grant are restricted to U.S. citizens and permanent residents.
• Applicants must be committed to cancer research.
• Predoctoral applicants must be enrolled in GPILS (PhD or MD/PhD program) at the University of Maryland Baltimore. Students must have completed the required courses: GPLS 790 - Advanced Cancer Biology and GPLS 665 - Cancer Biology: From Basic Research to the Clinic.
• Postdoctoral applicants must have completed doctoral level training (e.g. PhD, MD, MD/PhD, PharmD, DDS or equivalent). Evidence of scholarly productivity in the form of publications or planned publications is highly desirable. Post-doctoral trainees from Residency and Fellowship training programs (e.g. Radiation Oncology, Hematology/Oncology, and Oncology residents from OB-GYN, Otorhinolaryngology, Pathology, Pediatrics, Medicine or Surgery residency programs) are encouraged to apply.
Guidelines and Application 2020
Faculty Members
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Name/Degree(s) |
Research Focus |
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The molecular biology of HPV associated cancer (cervical and head and neck cancer) and breast cancer, identification of new genomics and epigenomics biomarkers of cervical cancer. Cancer registration and epidemiology. Breast cancer epidemiology – genetics, epigenetics and gut microbiomics determinants of hormone receptor specific types of breast cancer |
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Regulation of signaling pathways affecting cancer growth and metastasis, vascular biology, angiogenesis, and inflammation by serine proteases and their inhibitors. |
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To develop therapies that use the immune system to fight cancer, with an emphasis on 1) adoptive immunotherapy of cancer using tumor-specific CD4 T cells or tumor-specific CD8+ T cells and 2) the use of cytokine therapies especially IL-15 and cytokine antibody immune complexes. |
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Signaling pathways affecting drug resistance mechanisms in acute myeloid leukemia |
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Biostatistical methodology for the design and analysis of cancer combination studies; adaptive clinical trial designs, risk and prognostic modeling, regularized regression models for genomic and proteomic data, statistical analysis for the evaluation of accuracy of diagnostic tests and cancer biomarkers and epidemiology including hierarchical modeling in cancer control studies. |
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Internationally recognized for her pioneering work on the development of aromatase inhibitors as a treatment for breast cancers. |
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The immunology of chemokines and cell migration on the immune response; regulation of the T cell response in immunosuppression and cancer therapy |
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Regulation of signal protein activity and fate by reactive oxygen species (ROS); mechanisms of action of natural, synthetic and biological anti-tumor agents. |
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DNA damage response, activation of RNA binding proteins, Histone deacetylase Inhibitors, Translational research, tumor suppressor genes (p53). |
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Cell and molecular biology of normal hematopoiesis and leukemia |
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Molecular markers of treatment response and outcome in head and neck cancer |
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Human genetic variation caused by transposable genetic elements and small insertions/deletions (INDELs) |
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Identifying hormonal determinants of cancer, particularly breast cancer, and hormonal mechanisms by which environmental and behavioral exposures, as well as genetics, affect cancer risk |
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The molecular, cellular and genetic correlates of the development and persistence of cancer-treatment related chronic pain. |
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MAPK signaling and transcriptional control of gene expression |
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The role of human gut microbial communities in health and various diseases including obesity, inflammatory bowel disease, and colon cancer. |
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Biologic determinants of cancer metastasis; biologic basis of cancer disparities; role of cyclooxygenase pathway in tumor biology; role of chemokine receptors in tumor biology |
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HIV biology and vaccine development |
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The biology of the MEK/ERK pathway vis-à-vis its role in regulating the MCT-1 oncogene and how they contribute to lymphomagenesis. |
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Molecular virology; role of the immune system and host factors in controlling HIV infection. HIV proteins in murine models of lymphomagenesis |
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Molecular mechanisms of antiproliferative activities by the tumor suppressor RNase-L. Posttranscriptional regulation of mRNA turnover, and alteration of this control in tumor cells. |
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Immune engineering; synthetic materials, nanotechnology |
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Molecular mechanisms underlying metastasis driving mutations in melanoma |
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Cytokine signaling, apoptosis, chemosensitivity, macrophage activation, allergic lung inflammation |
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Translational neuro-oncology; integrating innovative biophysical techniques and advanced therapeutic delivery platforms with brain cancer biology to solve clinical problems and improve patient outcomes. |
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Department of Physics, University of Maryland College Park; application of cutting-edge mathematical-physical principles of analysis to large-scale data for cancer research, diagnostics and therapeutics. |
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Protein engineering via chemical protein synthesis; defensin structure, function and mechanisms of action; antiviral and antitumor peptides for targeted molecular therapy |
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Force field development and computational studies of nucleic acids, proteins and carbohydrates |
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Cytoskeletal and apoptotic determinants of circulating breast tumor cell survival and metastasis. |
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Rational discovery and development of small molecules as anti-cancer agents, with a focus on breast, prostate and pancreatic cancers |
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Development of biomarkers for breast cancer and aromatase inhibitor therapy |
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Cancer-induced immune suppression; cancer immunotherapies; cancer vaccines; myeloid-derived suppressor cells (MDSC) and tumor associated macrophages (TAMS) as potent immune suppressors |
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Transcriptional regulation of tumor angiogenesis and breast cancer metastasis; metabolic function of vascular endothelial cells in obesity |
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Molecular mechanisms underlying drug resistance in prostate cancer, specifically autocrine/paracrine factors that activate protein kinase cascades controlling antiapoptotic signaling to confer resistance to therapies. |
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Production of reactive oxygen species (ROS), DNA damage and repair responses in leukemia leading to genomic instability and disease progression. |
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Muscarinic receptors and ligands in colon cancer |
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Regulation of angiogenesis in vivo. Activation of p53 and mechanisms of p53 modulation of angiogenesis and arteriogenesis. |
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Molecular mechanisms of novel anti-neoplastic agent action, clinical studies of novel cancer therapies |
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Use of antidiabetic biguanides, such as metformin, in oral cancer chemoprevention and treatment |
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Kinase signaling cascades and regulation of cell proliferation, development of small molecular weight compounds that selectively inhibit MAP kinase interactions with substrate proteins. |
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Biophysical and biochemical characterization of the B-cell lymphoma mutation MyD88L265P; Toll-like and Interleukin -1 receptor antagonists against microbial pathogens and immunity. |
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Structure and function of retroviral proteins and the viral genome, mechanism of structural protein assembly and packaging during virus intracellular movement |
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Molecular mechanisms by which PTEN loss promotes metastatic efficiency of circulating tumor cells |
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Mechanisms associated with radiation injury; use of radioprotectors and sensitizers in treating genitourinary and prostate cancers |
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Nuclear receptor-mediated induction of drug-metabolizing enzymes and transporters, metabolism-based drug-drug interactions, and drug-induced liver toxicity. |
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The roles and mechanisms of cellular polyamines and polyamine-regulated genes in the control of intestinal epithelial cell proliferation, apoptosis, migration, and cell-to-cell interactions. |
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Cancer immunology, specifically investigating mechanisms by which tumors evade immune detection as well developing novel immunotherapeutic strategies for the treatment of melanoma, breast and prostate cancers. |
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Structure/function relationships of calcium-binding proteins and their biological targets, cancer biology, structural biology, drug design |
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Role of the TWEAK/Fn14 axis in tumor growth and metastasis. |
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Translational neuro-oncology with a research focus on delivering effective therapeutics to brain-invading, unresectable glioblastoma cancer cells. |
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Cell motility, tumor invasion, metastasis, cell biology, genome instability, angiogenesis, and tyrosine kinase signaling pathways. |
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Myeloid-derived suppressor cells in tumor growth and metastasis. |