Tsai Lab
Robert Tsai, MD, PhD
Research Interests
My program's development follows two overarching research directions: one in basic science and the other in translational medicine. On the basic research front, my laboratory is focused on understanding the molecular mechanism that drives the self-renewal of stem cells and cancer cells and their biological importance in tissue regeneration (i.e., liver), premature aging, and cancer development, prevention, and treatment. We employ a wide variety of biological platforms, including molecular interventions, primary cells, cell line models, animal models (mouse and rat), clinical samples, and genome-wide data analysis to study two chromatin-modifying mechanisms in cancer and aging. The first mechanism involves a family of nucleolar GTPases, one of which, nucleostemin (NS), confers a unique chromatin state in stem/cancer cells critical for maintaining the integrity of their replicating genome. The second mechanism is conferred by novel DNA methylation sites that drive the progression of premalignant lesions to cancers in the liver or oral mucosa or the age-dependent decline in liver regeneration. My laboratory is currently focused on three projects on the translational research front. The first project is to develop and commercialize a novel 3-D-printed mucoadhesive patch to eradicate oral precancerous lesions (i.e., leukoplakia) for oral cancer prevention with high lesion-specific efficacy and low systemic toxicities. The second project is to create new diagnostic models based on changes in the DNA methylation pattern to predict the risk of liver and oral precancerous lesions developing into cancers. The third project is to determine the efficacy of a new class of nanomedicine in treating glioblastoma multiforme using orthotopic mouse brain tumor models. The long-term goal of our translational programs is to take those products to clinical applications.