Curt I. Civin, M.D.
Institutional Affiliation
Associate Dean for Research
Director of the Center for Stem Cell Biology
and Regenerative Medicine
Professor of Pediatrics
University of Maryland School of Medicine
http://medschool.umaryland.edu/facultyresearchprofile/
viewprofile.aspx?id=21250
Education
Amherst College
Harvard Medical School
Internship
Children’s Hospital Medical Center (Boston, MA)
Residency
Children’s Hospital Medical Center (Boston, MA)
Research
MicroRNAs Regulating Acute Leukemias
Impact
The major goal of this project is to elucidate the effects of selected microRNAs expressed in normal human hematopoietic stem-progenitor cells on leukemia stem cells and to determine the molecular mechanisms of these cellular microRNA effects. We have focused our studies on 2 microRNAs that appear to behave as tumor suppressors.
Summary of Research
Until recently thought of as merely “sawdust” from the cell’s sculpting of RNAs, a set of small snippets of RNA called microRNAs has been discovered to serve as powerful molecular regulators of nearly all cell functions. We revealed the importance of microRNAs in the development of normal human blood-forming cells. Turning our attention to human leukemias, we have found 2 microRNAs that are turned off in many leukemias. Turning these 2 microRNAs back on in human leukemia cells reduces their growth, increases their natural tendency to death, and decreases their drug resistance. We are now studying the molecular mechanisms by which these microRNAs exert their effects in the hope that this may lead to new leukemia treatments. |
