Jean-Jacques Lebrun, PhD

Primary Axis: 
Cancer
Email: 
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Research Focus: 

The main research goal of my laboratory is to investigate the mechanism of action of growth factors from the transforming growth factor-b (TGFb) family in regulating cell growth arrest and apoptosis in cancer and their involvement in tumor progression. TGFb ligands signal through serine kinase receptors and the tumor suppressor genes, Smads. Defects in the intracellular signaling pathways that regulate these processes have been shown in many cases as the underlying basis for cancer. Our research aims at understanding the mechanism of hormone/growth factor-receptor interactions, signal transduction and activation of transcription of target genes leading to regulation of cell growth, differentiation, and apoptosis. Understanding these mechanisms may reveal important for future development of therapeutic approaches to human cancer.Cancer, signal transduction, serine kinase receptors, TGFb, activin, apoptosis

Keywords: 
Cancer, signal transduction, serine kinase receptors, TGFb, activin, apoptosis
Location: 
Royal Victoria Hospital
Publications:
Ho J, deGuise C, Kim C, Lemay S, Wang XF, Lebrun JJ. Activin induces hepatocyte cell growth arrest through induction of the cyclin dependent kinase Inhibitor p15INK4B and Sp1 Cell Signal 2004; 16: 693-701.
Valderrama H, Cocolakis E, Lacerte A, Lee E-H, Krystal G, Ali S, Lebrun JJ. Activin/TGF_ induce apoptosis through Smad-dependent expression of the lipid phosphatase SHIP. Nature Cell Biology 2002; 4: 963-969.
Cocolakis E, Lemay S, Ali S, Lebrun JJ. The p38 MAP Kinase pathway is required for cell growth inhibition of human breast cancer cells in response to activin. Journal of Biological Chemistry 2001; 276: 18430-18436.