Overview
Women who develop breast cancer do so because of a mixture of the environment in which they live and also the aberrant action of some genes. In order to further understand how breast cancer develops and can be treated, our laboratory is focused on understanding how these breast cancer 'susceptibility' genes work. By knowing exactly how the action of some genes may cause or progress breast cancer, we hope to finally develop treatments that are specifically based on our findings.
Currently we are looking at three main fields of interest:
(i) DNA repair genes and breast cancer
(ii) Novel genes involved in breast cancer, such as PPMID
(iii) The mechanism of tamoxifen resistance
DNA repair genes and breast cancer
In 1997 our laboratory helped identify the BRCA2 gene, which when mutated, can contribute to the development of breast cancer. We progressed with this work by illustrating that BRCA2 is involved in DNA repair.
Our DNA is constantly damaged by our environment and mechanisms exist within each cell to repair this damage. When BRCA2 is mutated and does not function correctly, DNA is not repaired in the normal fashion and mutations in other genes build up. This can initiate the development of a tumour.
Work from our lab and that of others, has now shown precisely how BRCA2 is involved in DNA repair. We are now investigating ways in which we can use this information to design new forms of treatment for those with breast cancer.
We are maintaining our work on BRCA2 function by investigating how this protein interacts with other parts of the cell's DNA repair machinery, and by manipulating these proteins we may be able to manipulate tumour cells with mutations in BRCA2.
Novel genes and breast cancer
As well as examining how established breast cancer susceptibility genes such as BRCA2 are involved in the development of the disease, we are also assessing other genes, such as PPM1D, that may be involved.
The work of the Gene Function Laboratory is diverse and is carried out by many different research groups.
