PROFILE
Cancer is a group of diseases that share a commonality of uncontrolled growth of affected cells leading to tumors, metastases and, in many cases, death. There is presently no definitive cure for cancer and the available treatments are very aggressive, with devastating effects on normal as well as tumor tissue.
Our group has discovered a novel family of ribonucleic acid (RNA) molecular biomarkers of mitochondrial origin, which have proven to be universal targets for diagnostics and therapy of cancer. For the therapeutic approach we are developing drugs which target cancer cells selectively, leaving normal cells unaffected. Also, this differential pattern allows for development of a universal diagnostic tool, independent of the tissue of origin. At present, we are focused on a subset of human and mouse tumor models including melanoma (skin cancer), uterine cervix cancer and bladder cancer. The administration of the oligonucleotide therapy in cancer models has proven to significantly slow the growth and eventually eliminate tumors in mice. We are completing preclinical studies to extend these findings to the eventual treatment of human tumors.
LAB MEMBERS
Research Head: Luis O. Burzio
Senior Investigators: Jaime Villegas • Verónica Burzio • Claudio Villota
Principal Investigators: Lorena Lobos-Gonzalez
Postdoctoral Fellows: Soledad Vidaurre • Luciana Oliveira-Cruz • Vincenzo Borgna
Doctoral students: Christopher Fitzpatrick Maximiliano Bendek • Nicole Farfán • Emanuel Jeldes
Undergraduate students: Rocío Bustos
Research Assistants: Mariela Araya • Macarena Briones • Constanza Lopez • Teresa Socias • Verónica Silva