Identifying genes to stop sarcomas in kids and dogs

Methods

Summary

We are a collaborative team made up of PhD researchers, MDs, and veterinarians, so we use lots of different techniques to test our hypotheses. For example, we will use molecular biology to manipulate genes we think are enhancing sarcoma stemness and aggression. These techniques include RNA inteference, over-expression, and genome editing. We will also test our hypotheses in both cell lines and in patient-derived xenografts, or PDXs. PDXs allow us to grow tumors from dogs and humans directly in mice. The PDXs more closely reflect the true biology of an individual tumor. Another conceptual approach we use is comparative oncology. Comparative oncology is studying cancer in multiple species to better understand the disease. By studying sarcoma in both dog and human cell lines and PDXs, we hope to find underlying principles and mechanisms that are common in both species. In this way, if we find a possible treatment for one species, it would have potential to work in the other species.