| Start Date: | 1/9/2015 | Start Time: | 4:00 PM |
| End Date: | 1/9/2015 | End Time: | 5:30 PM |
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Event Description
Zulfiya Orynbayeva, PhD, research assistant professor in the department of surgery at Drexel's College of Medicine, will discuss how mitochondria, the so called powerhouses of the cell, play a critical role in cell homeostasis and how they are implicated in aging and in a wide range of pathologies, including neurodegeneration, diabetes, inflammatory dysfunctions and cancer. Most research on different types of malignancies has been focused on the detection of genetic predisposition and protein signaling profiles. The study and targeting of signal-integrating metabolic systems, like energy metabolism, and the effect of the tumor microenvironment on metabolic pathways, have been largely unexplored. This talk will focus on our recent studies of the mechanisms of regulation of oxidative phosphorylation of prostate cancer mitochondria via fueling cancer cells with energy rich metabolites triggered by the factors pertinent to the tumorigenic microenvironment. This talk will also highlight the importance of the analysis of mechanisms underlying cell behaviors and functions on the level of a single cell to overcome the averaging of the data obtained from a cell population, which lacks the specificity to capture rare cells that might explain cell metabolic hierarchy, differentiation, and pathological transitions such as epithelial-mesenchymal transformations. Mapping of mitochondrial metabolism involves understanding of the role of different metabolites and environmental factors in a “typical" cell and also various effects due to heterogeneity of behaviors between different cells in a population and within the same cell at different times. This direction of research is complementary to single cell genomic analysis and requires development of new methods and tools. No tools are available to study such heterogeneity at the present time. Single cell tools may find applications in assisting clinical diagnostics and development of personalized medicine. Together with colleagues from the Drexel College of Engineering, we have started developing such tools. In this discussion, my aim is to solicit input and ideas for applications. For more info, please visit www.biomed.drexel.edu. |
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Location:
Papadakis Integrated Sciences Building (PISB), Room 120, located at the corner of 33rd and Chestnut Streets. |
Audience:
Undergraduate StudentsGraduate StudentsFacultyStaff |
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