Prof. Morag Park and Dr. Lorenzo Ferri have established a gastric cancer biobank including an important collection of patient-derived gastric cancer models (xenografts and organoids) that are an enabling resource for understanding the biology and treatment response of gastric cancer. They are members of STORMing Cancer, a consortium that includes scientists and clinicians from Canada, the U.S., Israel and the UK, and which received 拢20M from Cancer Research UK through their Cancer Grand Challenges program. Prof. Park and Dr. Ferri's research on gastric cancer is also supported through the Quebec Cancer Consortium (QCC) and Marathon of Hope Cancer Centres Network (MoHCCN).
They have also collaborated with Prof. Joseph Kinsella (Dept. of Biological Engineering, 平特五不中) to develop 3D bioprinted gastric cancer models using cells derived directly from patient tumour samples. These engineered 鈥渁rtificial tissue鈥� models recapitulate patient drug responses and are a highly promising resource for drug discovery efforts in gastric cancer.
- Alginate-gelatin-Matrigel hydrogels enable the development and multigenerational passaging of patient-derived 3D bioprinted cancer spheroid models. Flores-Torres S, et al. Biofabrication. 2021 Mar 10;13(2). doi: 10.1088/1758-5090/abdb87. PMID: 33440351
Prof. Park鈥檚 work has helped to establish that the cancer-causing gene MET, which she discovered, is a major driver of gastric cancer. She has also identified mechanisms of resistance to drugs that inhibit MET in gastric cancer models.
- Dynamic reprogramming of signaling upon met inhibition reveals a mechanism of drug resistance in gastric cancer. Lai AZ, et al. Sci Signal. 2014 Apr 22;7(322):ra38. doi: 10.1126/scisignal.2004839. PMID: 24757178