Major Advancement in Neuroblastoma Research by Keck School of Medicine – The Babak Lab
Maria Babak shared a post by
“This is inspiring news in the fight against neuroblastoma!
The innovative use of super-enhancers to drive differentiation in cancer cells can increase the effectiveness of targeted therapies.
It’s a fantastic example of how cutting-edge research can translate into real-world impact.
Congratulations to Berkley Gryder and the entire research team for their outstanding work!”
Quoting The Babak Lab’s post:
“Scientific Wednesday: Major Advancement in Neuroblastoma Research!
A new study published in Nature Portfolio by Deblina Banerjee, Sukriti Bagchi, Zhihui Liu et al., under the supervision of Berkley Gryder, uncovers how transcription factor waves driven by super-enhancers (SEs) can reprogram neuroblastoma cells from self-renewal to differentiation.
Key Highlights:
- Super-Enhancer Activation Waves. Identified distinct SE waves following all-trans retinoic acid (ATRA) treatment, linked to neuroblastoma cell differentiation.
- Critical Transcription Factors
- Validated SOX11 and SOX4 as essential for reprogramming neuroblastoma cells using CRISPR-Cas9 and siRNA.
- Innovative Methodology:
Employed H3K27ac ChIP-seq, RNA-seq, and advanced analytical techniques to uncover SE and TF dynamics.
This research enhances our understanding of neuroblastoma progression and opens new avenues for targeted therapies.
Congratulations to the researchers for their significant and impactful work!”
Source: Maria Babak/LinkedIn and The Babak Lab/LinkedIn
Dr. Maria (Masha) Babak is the Head of The Babak Lab and an Assistant Professor at the City University of Hong Kong. She earned her Ph.D. in bioinorganic chemistry from the University of Vienna in 2014. From 2015 to 2020, Dr. Babak was a postdoctoral research fellow at the National University of Singapore under the mentorship of Prof. Wee Han Ang, where she developed a strong passion for drug discovery and drug target identification.
In November 2020, she joined the City University of Hong Kong as an assistant professor. Dr. Babak received the Graeme Hanson-AsBIC Early Career Award in 2022.
Her research interests are at the intersection of chemistry, biology, and medicine, with a focus on the discovery and preclinical development of anticancer drugs for resistant and aggressive cancers with limited treatment options, such as malignant pleural mesothelioma and brain metastases.