Associate Professor Robert Yang has been studying the biogenesis and dynamics of lipid droplets for over a decade.
Mechanism of Action of the Anti-tumour Drug Cisplatin
The main aim of this research project is to investigate genes that are preferentially affected by the anti-tumour drug Cisplatin. Cisplatin is widely used in the clinic as a cancer chemotherapeutic agent; however, its precise mechanism of action is not fully understood. The effect of this drug on the levels of transcription is a very important component of its mode of action.
A previous PhD student utilised microarrays to investigate the effect of Cisplatin on the levels of transcription of 19,000 human genes. She identified several hundred genes that were upregulated or downregulated by Cisplatin. It is proposed to investigate in detail a subset of these Cisplatin-affected genes. In this way it is hoped to i) more fully understand the mechanism of action of this drug; and ii) identify possible gene targets as mimics of Cisplatin action. Progress with ii) could provide the basis for a nucleic acid therapy as a cancer chemotherapeutic agent. In this project, RNAi will be utilised to gauge the importance of the Cisplatin-affected genes.
BABS personnel that are responsible for this project