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Department Overview
The research of the Department of Molecular Oncology is centered on understanding basic mechanisms of cancer biology and identifying opportunities for further translational and clinical cancer research. The long-term goal is to develop novel cancer therapies for a variety of cancers in close collaboration with clinical faculty at Moffitt.
Our research falls into five research themes including gene expression & signal transduction, mouse models of human cancer, epigenetics, systems oncology, and cancer therapeutics. Our faculty use sophisticated models and techniques to accomplish their research. Postdoctoral, PhD students, undergraduates, and staff are exceptionally trained in technologies ranging from mouse modeling, 3D organoid tissue culture methods, Next-Generation sequencing, molecular biology and biochemistry.
Primary Faculty
Elsa R. Flores, PhD – Department Chair and Senior Member
The Flores Lab utilizes mouse models to identify therapeutic vulnerabilities of the p53 pathway in cancer.
Research Themes: Gene expression & Signal Transduction, Mouse Models, Cancer Therapeutics
Joe Kissil, PhD - Vice Chair
Research in the Kissil lab focuses on mechanistic understanding of mitogenic and developmental signaling pathways crosstalk in cancer and on the identification of therapeutic targets.
Mark G. Alexandrow, PhD – Associate Member
The Alexandrow lab studies the mechanisms involved in the assembly and activation of the replicative CMG helicase, how deregulation of this process promotes tumorigenesis, and how the CMG helicase offers innovative targeting for chemotherapeutic drug development.
Research Themes: Gene expression & Signal Transduction, Cancer Therapeutics
Jennifer Binning, PhD – Assistant Member
The Binning lab uses biochemistry and structural biology to study how oncoviruses such as Human Papillomavirus (HPV) hijack host ubiquitin machinery to support viral replication and drive tumorigenesis.
Research Themes: Gene expression & Signal Transduction, Cancer Therapeutics
Jiandong Chen, PhD – Senior Member
The Chen Lab investigates the function, regulation, and therapeutic targeting of the p53 tumor suppressor pathway.
Research Themes: Gene expression & Signal Transduction, Mouse Models, Cancer Therapeutics
W. Douglas Cress, PhD – Senior Member
The Cress Lab is interested in the molecular biology of lung adenocarcinoma.
Research Themes: Gene expression & Signal Transduction, Systems Oncology, Cancer Therapeutics
Ana Gomes, PhD - Assistant Member
The Gomes Lab is interested in understanding how age-driven metabolic and epigenetic changes drive tumor progression and metastasis formation.
Florian A. Karreth, PhD – Assistant Member
The Karreth Lab creates mouse models to elucidate the functions of cancer-associated proteins and non-coding RNAs in melanoma and ovarian cancer.
Research Themes: Mouse Models, Systems Oncology, Cancer Therapeutics
John M. Koomen, PhD – Associate Member
The Koomen Lab uses mass spectrometry-based techniques to better understand cancer biology, evaluate hypotheses derived from basic science experiments in human tumors, and contribute to the development of novel strategies for patient assessment and treatment.
Research Themes: Systems Oncology, Cancer Therapeutics
Moffitt Profile | Proteomics Software website | Proteomics Core website
Karen M. Mann, PhD – Assistant Member
The Karen Mann Lab aims to define and characterize cooperating molecular events driving cancer progression, metastasis and drug resistance, with a focus on pancreatic cancer and myeloid leukemia.
Research Themes: Mouse Models, Systems Oncology, Cancer Therapeutics
Michael B. Mann, PhD – Assistant Member
The Michael Mann Lab's research program is dedicated to discovering the genetic events that drive skin cancer evolution.
Research Themes: Mouse Models, Systems Oncology, Cancer Therapeutics
Moffitt Profile | Lab website
Gary W. Reuther, PhD – Associate Member
The Reuther Lab utilizes molecular, cellular, and genetic approaches to identify novel therapies that could improve the lives of patients with myeloproliferative neoplasms.
Research Themes: Gene expression & Signal Transduction, Cancer Therapeutics
Lixin Wan, PhD – Assistant Member
The Wan Lab is dedicated to understanding how cancer cells hijack protein post-translational modification machinery to rewire the central signaling pathways for proliferation advantage and drug resistance.
Research Themes: Gene expression & Signal Transduction, Cancer Therapeutics
Secondary Faculty
Robert Gatenby, MD – Senior Member
The Gatenby Lab is interested in the role of eco-evolutionary principles in cancer biology and therapy.
Research Themes: Systems Oncology, Cancer Therapeutics