Group for Research of Molecular Functions and Targets
Division of Metastasis and Invasion Signaling

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Research Staff

Research Activities

The malignant characteristics of the cancers to invade the surrounding tissue and to cause metastasis to distant organs are closely related to the prognosis and QOL(quality of life) of the cancer-bearing patients, and therefore great threat to clinical treatment of cancer. It appears that there are several signaling pathways activated during the progression of cancer, which are responsible for the alteration of cancer cells to achieve the ability to cause invasion and metastasis. However, it is not well understood what kind of signaling molecules are involved in this procedure. Numbers of receptor and non-receptor tyrosine kinases are involved in multiple steps of cancer progression. Signals from activated tyrosine kinases are mediated through phosphorylation of substrate molecules to modulate cell characteristics during tumor proliferation and metastasis. The main object of our division is to elucidate the roles of tyrosine phosphorylation of signaling molecules during cancer development. One of our goals of the research is to establish models of the signal therapy of progressed cancer by regulating phosphotyrosine-dependent interactions between signaling molecules.

Research Projects

• Regulation of Tumor Metastasis and Invasion by Phosphotyrosine-dependent Interactions
• Establishment of Experimental Models for The Study of Cancer Invasion and Metastasis
• Analysis of Signaling Molecules Involved in The Differentiation of Neuroblastoma

List of Papers Published

• papers published in 2007
• papers published in 2006
• papers published in 2005
• papers published in 2004
• papers published in 2003