The Center for Biomedical Discovery's cancer and cell aging biomedical research platform brings together investigators with diverse skills and interests to tackle the complex questions posed by human disease through understanding:
- Genetic and epigenetic causes of cancer and aging (for example, how do genes and the environment cause specific types of cancer or cell and tissue aging?)
- How the immune system and metabolic changes contribute to cancer and aging
- Why cancer develops in and travels to some organs and not others
- The mechanisms that control cancer cell growth
- How cells and tissues age and functionally decline
- The role of cellular senescence in aging and age-related disease
- The mechanisms of stem cell aging and loss of regenerative potential
Normal regulated cell growth is required for life, whereas cancer (neoplasia) results from uncontrolled cell growth. Researchers study the mechanisms that control and regulate cell growth, or that fail to do so in cancer.
Cell aging contributes to functional decline of tissues and organs and increases the risk of chronic diseases such as Alzheimer's disease, atherosclerosis, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis, osteoarthritis and osteoporosis. One type of aged cells, senescent cells, are highly abundant at disease sites, indicating that they are particularly important drivers of pathology. Senescent cells are of particular interest to investigators in the Center for Biomedical Discovery's cancer and cell aging platform.