MOLECULAR ANALYSIS RESOURCE FOR PRIMARY HUMAN CANCERS

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The Sidney Kimmel Cancer Center is a growing institution with the mission to conduct basic biological research to under the mechanisms of cancer and to translate discoveries in the laboratories to the treatment of patients. Twenty-five faculty members conduct research programs at the Cancer Center almost half of whom are funded by NCI grants. To utilize the best tools available in the molecular dissection of half of whom are funded by NCI grants. To utilize the best tools available in the molecular dissection of half of whom are funded by NCI grants. To utilize the best tools available in the molecular dissection of half of whom are funded by NCI grants. To utilize the best tools available in the molecular dissection of cancer biology and therapy, shared resources which supply these tools are by far the best value both scientifically and monetarily. The shared resources specifically identified and requested are a tumor bank and registry, a tissue analysis resource featuring Laser Capture Microscopy and a cDNA array resource. The tumor bank and registry facility forms the foundation for the molecular analyses provided by the other two components of the proposed shared resources. The goal of numerous investigators here is to characterize the molecular properties of tumor cells, including specific stages of tumor progression, and to compare the properties of different tumors of the same and dissimilar types. The ability to evaluate individually selected cells or specific clusters of cells from a tumor specimen based on morphology has been extremely difficult until recently. The recent advance that has overcome these difficulties is the development of the laser capture microdissection instrumentation. This instrumentation allows various types of molecular analyses on visually identified and selected cells. One of the most powerful of these analyses utilizes technologies to define differential gene expression, a subject pioneered by SKCC investigators and one that represents a major strength and interest of SKCC research. Thus, the tumor registry coupled with laser capture microdissection and cDNA array analysis of differential gene expression provides a powerful set of shared resources for SKCC investigators to probe the molecular and genetic properties of cancer cells. The need of these services by our investigators is evidenced by their applications of these services to their research Major goals of the use of these shared resources are the identification of new diagnostic and therapeutic targets for clinical application and a better understanding of the processes of cancer development and metastatic progression.