The mission of the University of Florida Health Cancer Center (UFHCC) Mechanisms of Oncogenesis (MOO) program is to increase the understanding of how normal cells undergo multiple complex changes leading to transformation into cancer cells. The research aims focus on genomic and epigenetic mutations and cell signaling, the role of noncoding RNAs in cancer, and on how DNA tumorviruses dysregulate host cellular pathways leading to cancer.
The scientific objectives of the MOO program are to identify and understand cellular pathways that are dysregulated during neoplastic transformation and progression to decipher how these changes promote the cancer phenotype, and to develop methodologies to target these cancer-specific signaling events.
Aims
- Elucidate the origins, propagation and functions of neoplastic genomic and epigenomic instability. Data generated by contemporary genomics approaches has made it apparent that many cancers carry both genomic and epigenetic alterations that directly contribute to the neoplastic phenotype. Chemo resistance is often driven by epigenetic and genetic drift, which affects genes involved in DNA repair pathways. MOO investigators utilize state of the art technologies with the goal of understanding and targeting molecular mechanisms directly related to these processes.
- Define the role of noncoding RNAs in oncogenesis. In addition to roughly 30,000 protein encoding genes that make up only about 3 percent of the human genome, we now understand that a much larger proportion of our chromosomes express a complex family of noncoding RNAs, including microRNAs (miRNAs) and long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs). Dysregulation of these noncoding RNAs, which regulate many molecular mechanisms, is a more recently identified hallmark of many cancer cells. MOO investigators are dedicated to deciphering molecular mechanisms of noncoding RNA dysregulation and their contributions to tumorigenesis, which will lead to identification of novel biomarkers for cancer diagnostics and development of RNA-based therapeutic approaches.
- Study DNA tumor viruses to elucidate the role of epigenetics and non-coding RNA in cancer. The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that about 15 to 20 percent of all cancers have an infectious etiology, most of which are caused by tumors. Like eukaryotic, viral tumorigenesis is a multi-step process that involves host-viral interactions affecting immunity, epigenetics, DNA repair, and both the expression and perturbation of miRNAs and lncRNAs. Studies of DNA tumorviruses by MOO investigators complement aims 1 and 2 of this program by providing easily tractable genetic model systems to study genetic and epigenetic regulation of gene expression in viral tumorigenesis.
By achieving a greater understanding of genomic and epigenetic neoplastic alterations and the role of noncoding RNAs in tumorigenesis, MOO investigators will further accelerate the identification of novel potential therapeutic targets. The long-term goal of these aims is to develop rational bases for combining interventions using these targets in a patient-specific, precision medicine manner, and to translate them into novel therapeutic approaches.
In summary, the MOO program impacts all programs and missions of UFHCC by performing cutting edge basic and translational research to identify and pursue novel therapeutic approaches. MOO members are highly collaborative (Inter and intra-programmatic) and train the next generation of cancer researchers.
Objectives
- Enhance high impact research in all three aims.
- Create an interactive scientific environment that facilitates collaborations within MOO and across UFHCC programs.
- Provide opportunities for medical, graduate and postdoctoral students, as well as physician scientists in interdisciplinary cancer research.
- Facilitate the translation of discovery of new targets and/or potential new therapeutics identified in the MOO program in collaboration with CTHR and CPS investigators into clinical trials.
- Support research that focuses on catchment area-specific cancer.
Program Co-Leaders
Rolf Renne, Ph.D.
Rolf Renne, Ph.D., is the interim program co-leader of the Mechanisms of Oncogenesis (MOO) program.
For nearly 13 years, Dr. Renne has served as a professor in the UF College of Medicine’s department of molecular genetics and microbiology, studying the Kaposi sarcoma-associated herpesvirus — which has been his research focus since 1995. His laboratory uses genomics, genetics and ribonomics approaches to study how virally-encoded genes and microRNAs contribute to KSHV biology and tumorigenesis.
Dr. Renne received his master’s and Ph.D. degrees from the Albert-Ludwigs University of Freiburg, Germany. He performed most of his Ph.D. thesis work at UC Davis with Dr. Paul Luciw in the field of retrovirology. Next, he joined the laboratory of Dr. Don Ganem at UCSF where he contributed to early work on establishing tissue culture models for KSHV, which had recently been identified as the causative pathogen for Kaposi sarcoma in patients with AIDS.
In 1999, he joined the faculty at Case Western Reserve University, where he focused on molecular aspects such as the role of the KSHV latency-associated nuclear antigen (LANA) in DNA binding and latent DNA replication. He established the only available Kaposi sarcoma xenograft model. In 2004, he moved to UF where his laboratory was one of four worldwide to sequence and identify KSHV-encoded microRNAs.
The unifying goal of Dr. Renne’s research has been to achieve a deeper understanding of how latent gamma-herpesvirus gene products, including microRNAs and long noncoding RNAs, contribute to viral tumorigenesis of AIDS malignancies. His current focus is on epigenetic regulation of viral latency, and the role of long and small non-coding RNAs in viral biology.
Dr. Renne has been continuously funded by multiple NCI grants since 2004. In 2017, he was awarded a multi-investigator NCI Program Project together with Scott Tibbetts, Ph.D., an associate professor at UF, and Erik Flemington, Ph.D., a professor at Tulane University.
He serves on the editorial boards of the Journal of Virology and Virology and has authored more than 80 peer-reviewed articles. In 2009, Dr. Renne co-chaired the 11th International Workshop on KSHV and related agents as well as the 40th International Herpesvirus Workshop in Boise, Idaho in 2015. He serves on multiple NIH special emphasis panels.
Daohong Zhou, M.D.
Daohong Zhou, M.D., is program co-leader.
He is a professor in the Department of Pharmacodynamics at the College of Pharmacy and a Professor in the Department of Radiation Oncology at the College of Medicine, University of Florida (UF) at Gainesville. He serves as the Associate Director for Translation and Drug Development and the Henry E. Innes Professorsip of Cancer Research at the UF Health Cancer Center. Dr. Zhou received his medical (1978-1983) and graduate (1983-1986) training from Yunyany Medical College of Tongji Medical University and Henan Medical University, respectively; and his postdoctoral training (1990-1992) at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. Before he joined UF in 2018, he was a Professor of Pharmaceutical Sciences and the Deputy Director of the Division of Radiation Health at the College of Pharmacy and the Associate Director for Basic Research at the Winthrop P. Rockefeller Cancer Institute in the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS).
Dr. Daohong Zhou has published more than 100 peer reviewed scientific articles and book chapters. His research has been well supported by grants from various private and government funding agencies, including the National Cancer Institute (NCI) and National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease (NIAID). Dr. Daohong Zhou serves on several national and international peer review panels and as a reviewer for various scientific publications. He was a regular member of the Radiation Therapeutics and Biology Study Section at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and a co-chair of the Panel Meeting for General Program of the Dept. of Health Sciences (Hematology) at the National Natural Science Foundation of China (NSFC). He is a councilor of the Radiation Research Society and a co-founder of Unity Biotechnology, a biotech that develops senolytic drugs for aging and age-related diseases.
Program Members
To request an update, please email ResearchAdmin@cancer.ufl.edu.
| Name | Degree(s) | Research Program | Title | Department | College | Research Interest Topics |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Liao, Daiqing | Ph.D | Mechanisms of Oncogenesis (MOO) | Associate Professor | Anatomy & Cell Biology | Medicine | Apoptosis & Cell Death Pathways; Breast; Cancer Genetics; Cell Signaling Pathways; Chemotherapy; Drug Design; Epigenetics & Cancer; Epigenetics & Gene Regulation; Genital-Urinary/Prostate; Immunoregulation & Suppression; Tumor Virology/Virus-Host Interactions |
Ishov, Alexander | Ph.D | Mechanisms of Oncogenesis (MOO) | Associate Professor | Anatomy & Cell Biology | Medicine | Breast; Cancer Genetics; Chemotherapy; Epigenetics & Cancer |
Qiu, Yi | Ph.D | Mechanisms of Oncogenesis (MOO) | Assistant Professor | Anatomy & Cell Biology | Medicine | Epigenetics & Cancer |
Opavsky, Rene | Ph.D | Mechanisms of Oncogenesis (MOO) | Associate Professor | Anatomy & Cell Biology | Medicine | Epigenetics & Cancer; Epigenetics & Gene Regulation; Hematologic Malignancies/Blood & Marrow Transplant; Leukemia; Lymphoma |
Huang, Shuang | Ph.D | Mechanisms of Oncogenesis (MOO) | Professor | Anatomy & Cell Biology | Medicine | Breast; Cell Signaling Pathways; Drug Design; Drug Resistance; Epigenetics & Gene Regulation; Gynecological; Metastasis; MicroRNAs; RNA Processing |
Xiao, Rui | Ph.D | Mechanisms of Oncogenesis (MOO) | Assistant Professor | Aging & Geriatric Research | Medicine | Transcription Factors; Aging; Cellular Stress Response; Sensory Modulation of Aging; Environmental Factors |
Lu, Jianrong | Ph.D | Mechanisms of Oncogenesis (MOO) | Associate Professor | Biochemistry & Molecular Biology | Medicine | Angiogenesis; Apoptosis & Cell Death Pathways; Breast; Cancer Genetics; Cell Signaling Pathways; Epigenetics & Cancer; Epigenetics & Gene Regulation; Genetic Determinants of Cancer; Metastasis; Post-Transcriptional Gene Regulation |
Bungert, Jorg | Ph.D | Mechanisms of Oncogenesis (MOO) | Professor | Biochemistry & Molecular Biology | Medicine | Epigenetics & Gene Regulation; Hematologic Malignancies/Blood & Marrow Transplant |
Brown, Kevin | Ph.D | Mechanisms of Oncogenesis (MOO) | Associate Professor | Biochemistry & Molecular Biology | Medicine | DNA Damage |
Agbandje-McKenna, Mavis | Ph.D | Mechanisms of Oncogenesis (MOO) | Professor | Biochemistry & Molecular Biology | Medicine | Gene Therapy; Oncolytic Viral Vectors; Structural Virology; Targeted Cancer Therapy |
Kilberg, Michael | Ph.D | Mechanisms of Oncogenesis (MOO) | Professor | Biochemistry & Molecular Biology | Medicine | Cell Signaling Pathways; Epigenetics & Cancer; Epigenetics & Gene Regulation; Leukemia; Liver; Post-Transcriptional Gene Regulation |
Kladde, Michael | Ph.D | Mechanisms of Oncogenesis (MOO) | Professor | Biochemistry & Molecular Biology | Medicine | Cancer Epigenetics; Colorectal and Breast Cancer; Glioblastoma; Cell Signaling Pathways |
Xie, Mingyi | Ph.D | Mechanisms of Oncogenesis (MOO) | Assistant Professor | Biochemistry & Molecular Biology | Medicine | Bioinformatics; Cancer Genetics; Cell Signaling Pathways; Epigenetics & Gene Regulation; MicroRNAs; RNA Processing; Tumor Virology/Virus-Host Interactions |
Frost, Susan | Ph.D | Mechanisms of Oncogenesis (MOO) | Professor | Biochemistry & Molecular Biology | Medicine | Breast; Chemotherapy; Environment |
Yang, Thomas | Ph.D | Mechanisms of Oncogenesis (MOO) | Professor | Biochemistry & Molecular Biology | Medicine | Epigenetics |
Bacher, Rhonda | Ph.D | Mechanisms of Oncogenesis (MOO) | Assistant Professor | Biostatistics | Public Health and Health Professions | Bioinformatics; Biostatistics |
Datta, Susmita | Ph.D | Mechanisms of Oncogenesis (MOO) | Professor | Biostatistics | Public Health & Health Professions | Bioinformatics; RNA processing |
Toth, Zsolt | Ph.D | Mechanisms of Oncogenesis (MOO) | Assistant Professor | Oral Biology | Dentistry | Angiogenesis; Cancer Genetics; Epigenetics & Gene Regulation; Immunoregulation & Suppression; Infection Control; Lymphoma; Post-Transcriptional Gene Regulation; RNA Processing; Tumor Virology/Virus-Host Interactions |
Concannon, Patrick | Ph.D | Mechanisms of Oncogenesis (MOO) | Professor | Pathology, Immunology & Laboratory Medicine | Medicine | Medicine; Breast; Diabetes |
Licht, Jonathan | M.D. | Mechanisms of Oncogenesis (MOO) | Professor | Hematology & Oncology | Medicine | DNA Damage & Repair; Epigenetics & Cancer; Epigenetics & Gene Regulation; Genetic Determinants of Cancer; Hematologic Malignancies/Blood & Marrow Transplant; Leukemia; Lymphoma |
Wang, Gary | Ph.D, M.D. | Mechanisms of Oncogenesis (MOO) | Associate Professor | Infectious Disease | Medicine | Bioinformatics; Gene Therapy; Liver |
Bennett, Richard | Ph.D | Mechanisms of Oncogenesis (MOO) | Research Assistant Professor | Hematology & Oncology | Medicine | Apoptosis & Cell Death Pathways; Cancer Genetics; Cell Signaling Pathways; Epigenetics & Gene Regulation; Hematologic Malignancies/Blood & Marrow Transplant; Immunoregulation & Suppression; Leukemia; Lymphoma; Post-Transcriptional Gene Regulation; RNA Processing; Tumor Virology/Virus-Host Interactions |
Bloom, David | Ph.D | Mechanisms of Oncogenesis (MOO) | Professor | Molecular Genetics & Microbiology | Medicine | Epigenetics & Cancer; Oncolytic Viral Vectors; Tumor Virology/Virus-Host Interactions |
Renne, Rolf | Ph.D | Mechanisms of Oncogenesis (MOO) | Professor | Molecular Genetics & Microbiology | Medicine | Cell Signaling Pathways; DNA Damage & Repair; Lymphoma; Skin/Melanoma; Tumor Virology/Virus-Host Interactions |
Tibbetts, Scott | Ph.D | Mechanisms of Oncogenesis (MOO) | Associate Professor | Molecular Genetics & Microbiology | Medicine | Apoptosis & Cell Death Pathways; Epigenetics & Cancer; Epigenetics & Gene Regulation; Hematologic Malignancies/Blood & Marrow Transplant; Immunotherapy; Infection Control; Leukemia; Lymphoma; MicroRNAs; Stem Cell; Tumor Virology/Virus-Host Interactions |
Wu, Lizi | Ph.D | Mechanisms of Oncogenesis (MOO) | Associate Professor | Molecular Genetics & Microbiology | Medicine | Apoptosis & Cell Death Pathways; Breast; Cancer Genetics; Cell Signaling Pathways; DNA Damage & Repair; Drug Design; Epigenetics & Cancer; Gynecological; Leukemia; Tumor Virology/Virus-Host Interactions |
Zhou, Lei | Ph.D, BMed | Mechanisms of Oncogenesis (MOO) | Associate Professor | Molecular Genetics & Microbiology | Medicine | Apoptosis & Cell Death Pathways; Bioinformatics; Cancer Genetics; Epigenetics & Cancer; Epigenetics & Gene Regulation; Genetic Determinants of Cancer; Radiation Oncology; Senescence |
Conesa Cegarra, Ana | Ph.D | Mechanisms of Oncogenesis (MOO) | Professor | Microbiology & Cell Science | IFAS | Genetic determinants; Bioinformatics |
De Crecy Lagard, Valerie | Ph.D | Mechanisms of Oncogenesis (MOO) | Professor | Microbiology & Cell Science | IFAS | Cell Signaling Pathways |
Maupin-Furlow, Julie | Ph.D | Mechanisms of Oncogenesis (MOO) | Professor | Microbiology & Cell Science | IFAS | Microbiology; Cell Signaling Pathways |
Guryanova, Olga | Ph.D, M.D. | Mechanisms of Oncogenesis (MOO) | Assistant Professor | Pharmacology & Therapeutics | Medicine | Cancer Genetics; Cancer Susceptibility; Cell Signaling Pathways; DNA Damage & Repair; Drug Resistance; Epigenetics & Cancer; Hematologic Malignancies/Blood & Marrow Transplant; Leukemia; Stem Cell |
Li, Chenglong | Ph.D | Mechanisms of Oncogenesis (MOO) | Professor | Medicinal Chemistry | Pharmacy | Cell Signaling Pathways; Drug Design; Drug Resistance; Epigenetics & Cancer; Hematologic Malignancies/Blood & Marrow Transplant; Immunotherapy; Neuro-Oncology; Pediatric Oncology; Stem Cell; Targeted Cancer Therapy |
Srivastava, Arun | Ph.D, BSc, MSc | Mechanisms of Oncogenesis (MOO) | Professor | Pediatric Research | Medicine | Hematologic Malignancies/Blood & Marrow Transplant; Liver; Stem Cell; Targeted Cancer Therapy; Tumor Virology/Virus-Host Interactions |
Ling, Chen | Ph.D | Mechanisms of Oncogenesis (MOO) | Research Assistant Professor | Pediatric Research | Medicine | Gene Therapy |
Zolotukhin, Sergei | Ph.D | Mechanisms of Oncogenesis (MOO) | Professor | Pediatric Research | Medicine | Gene Therapy |
Terada, Naohiro | Ph.D, M.D. | Mechanisms of Oncogenesis (MOO) | Professor | Pathology | Medicine | Angiogenesis; Cell Signaling Pathways; Stem Cell |
Jiang, Qiu-Xing | Ph.D | Mechanisms of Oncogenesis (MOO) | Associate Professor | Microbiology & Cell Science | Agriculture & Life Sciences | Endocrine; Neuroendocrine Cancers; Cancer Genetics; MicroRNAs; Nanotechnology; Structural Biology |
Lele, Tanmay | Ph.D | Mechanisms of Oncogenesis (MOO) | Associate Professor | Chemical Engineering | Engineering | Angiogenesis; Breast; Epigenetics & Cancer; Epigenetics & Gene Regulation; MicroRNAs; Nanotechnology; RNA Processing |
Tang, Xin | Ph.D | Mechanisms of Oncogenesis (MOO) | Assistant Professor | Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering | Engineering | Angiogenesis; Breast; Epigenetics & Cancer; Immunoregulation & Suppression; Immunotherapy; Integrative Medicine; Metastasis; Nanotechnology; Noninvasive Imaging/Tomography; Vascular Targeting |
Michailidis, George | Ph.D | Mechanisms of Oncogenesis (MOO) | Professor | Informatics Institute | Public Health & Health Professions | Bioinformatics |
Caglayan, Melike | Ph.D | Mechanisms of Oncogenesis (MOO) | Assistant Professor | Biochemistry & Molecular Biology | Medicine | Chemotherapy; DNA Damage & Repair; DNA Replication; Drug Design |
Papp, Bernadett | Ph.D | Mechanisms of Oncogenesis (MOO) | Research Assistant Professor | Oral Biology | Dentistry | Bioinformatics; Cell Signaling Pathways; Epigenetics & Cancer; Epigenetics & Gene Regulation; Stem Cell; Tumor Virology/Virus-Host interactions |
Qian, Zhijian | Ph.D | Mechanisms of Oncogenesis (MOO) | Associate Professor | Medicine - Hematology & Oncology | Medicine | Cancer Genetics; Cell Signaling Pathways; Drug Resistance; Epigenetics & Gene Regulation; Hematologic Malignancies/Blood & Marrow Transplant; Stem Cell |
Zhang, Weizhou | Ph.D | Mechanisms of Oncogenesis (MOO) | Professor | Pathology, Immunology & Laboratory Medicine | Medicine | Angiogenesis; Breast; Immunoregulation & Suppression; Immunotherapy; Kidney |
Baer, Charles | Ph.D | Mechanisms of Oncogenesis (MOO) | Assistant Professor | Biology | Liberal Arts & Sciences | Evolutionary Biology; Population Genetics; Quantitative Genetics |
Rong, Libin | Ph.D | Mechanisms of Oncogenesis (MOO) | Associate Professor | Mathematics | Liberal Arts & Sciences | Epidemiology |
Zhou, Daohong | Ph.D. | Mechanisms of Oncogenesis (MOO) | Professor | Pharmacodynamics | Pharmacy | Drug Design |
Bhaduri-McIntosh | Ph.D, M.D. | Mechanisms of Oncogenesis (MOO) | Associate Professor | Pediatrcs-Infectious Diseases | Medicine | Cancer Genetics; Cell Signaling Pathways; DNA Damage & Repair; DNA Replication; Epigenetics & Cancer; Epigenetics & Gene Regulation; Hematologic Malignancies/Blood & Marrow Transplant; Tumor Virology/Virus-Host Interactions |
Kaye, Frederic | Ph.D | Mechanisms of Oncogenesis (MOO) & Cancer Therapeutics & Host Response (CTHR) | Professor | Hematology & Oncology | Medicine | Cancer Genetics; Cell Signaling Pathways; Genetic Determinants of Cancer; Head & Neck; Lung; Thoracic Oncology |
Fredenburg, Kristianna | Ph.D, M.D. | Mechanisms of Oncogenesis (MOO) | Assistant Professor | Pathology | Medicine | Head & Neck |
Murfee, Walter | Ph.D | Mechanisms of Oncogenesis (MOO) | Associate Professor | Biomedical Engineering | Engineering | Angiogenesis; Stem Cell; Targeted Cancer Therapy; Vascular Targeting |
Kahveci, Tamer | Ph.D. | Mechanisms of Oncogenesis (MOO) | Professor | Computer & Information Science & Engineering | Engineering | Bioinformatics |