Michael Rosenblum, PHD

Biography

Dr. Rosenblum recently joined Texas A&M University and the Center for Translational Cancer Research as a Senior Professor. He transferred his Immunopharmacology and Targeted Therapy research program from the Department of Experimental Therapeutics at MD Anderson Cancer Center.

Dr. Rosenblum was the first to describe the pharmacological behavior of the first recombinant biological molecules such as IFN-alpha, IFN-beta, and IFN-gamma, in animal models and patients. He pioneered the monitoring of patient tumor specimens for selected molecular events specific to biological therapeutics to inform their impact at the tumor site. The application of pharmacological principles to biological molecules assisted in their clinical use and led to the creation of the Immunopharmacology and Targeted Therapy (ITT) program at MDACC, the first such program dedicated to studies of biological agents. The ITT program and Dr. Rosenblum were also the first to characterize the in vitro and in vivo behavior of monoclonal antibodies, antibody-radioisotope conjugates, monoclonal-drug conjugates, and the first recombinant fusion constructs, such as IL2-Diphtheria Toxin.

The ITT team and Dr. Rosenblum were the first to characterize the preclinical and clinical pharmacology of monoclonal antibodies and were among the first groups to examine the uptake of these agents into patient tumors as part of the clinical ITT program. This data led to a detailed understanding of how antibodies can be used as delivery vehicles for therapeutic applications.

Dr. Rosenblum was the first to develop novel chemical conjugates and recombinant fusion constructs of recombinant antibodies fused to recombinant cytokines (immunocytokines) or highly cytotoxic toxins such as gelonin. The ITT team and researchers from Genentech were among the first to describe the primary sequence of the toxin gelonin and created a completely recombinant version (rGel), allowing the development of potent, less immunogenic molecules. A first-in-class anti-CD-33 immunotoxin was developed by Dr. Rosenblum, and a clinical trial was recently published describing its efficacy in therapy-resistant patients.

Recently, the ITT team and collaborators have investigated the use of the Fn14 receptor for the cytokine TWEAK as a potential target in a number of solid tumors. This group was the first to demonstrate the overexpression of Fn-14 in 50% of TNBC tumors based on IHC of microarrays. Companion studies identified overexpression of Fn-14 in ~80% of human melanoma biopsy specimens. Additionally, Dr. Rosenblum has been instrumental in developing completely human, recombinant fusion constructs targeting Fn14 and other tumor antigens that display impressive in vitro and in vivo efficacy against tumor cell lines and xenografts. IND-enabling studies are ongoing at the ITT laboratory.

The GI Oncology group and Dr. Rosenblum have recently demonstrated impressive and specific cytotoxic effects of their CEA-targeted fusion construct containing granzyme B against CRC biopsy specimens and PDX models. This may lead to the rapid development of a novel class of agents for therapeutic trials.

Dr. Rosenblum has over 200 peer-reviewed publications, 350 abstracts, 17 book chapters, and numerous issued patents and patent applications. He has had continuous research funding from peer-reviewed grants, commercial SRAs, and private foundations.

Regarding educational service, Dr. Rosenblum taught graduate courses in GSBS from 2009-2013 (“Principles of Therapeutics” and “Mechanisms in Cancer Therapy”). He also served on numerous GSBS advisory, supervisory, and MS/Ph.D. exam committees and was a laboratory mentor for more than 50 postdoctoral and clinical fellows.

Dr. Rosenblum has worked in numerous administrative roles for many years and in various capacities. In particular, he was elected by his peers and served numerous terms on the Faculty Senate and further elected by the Senators to serve on the Executive Committee of the Faculty Senate. Dr. Rosenblum served as Chair of the Senate Education Committee for 10 years and was Co-Chair of the Institutional Grand Rounds Seminar series for 10 years. Dr. Rosenblum served as a member of the MDACC Conflict of Interest Committee where he was elected by his peers to serve as Vice Chair, Chair, and Past Chair for a period spanning 11 years. Dr. Rosenblum was appointed to serve as Chair of a Blue-Ribbon Panel to review Institutional policy on Conflict of Interest. Dr. Rosenblum was also appointed to serve MDACC as Senior Officer for Research Integrity.

Dr. Rosenblum has also provided extensive extramural service in various settings. He has served on numerous NIH and DOD Study Sections, as well as SBIR and State of California tobacco-related disease research programs (TRDRP). He has also served on the external advisory committees for programs at several institutions, including as an external reviewer for NIH intramural research programs. Additionally, he has provided continuous service in evaluating manuscripts for numerous journals and served on the Editorial Board as Senior or Associate Editor of several journals, including Molecular Cancer Therapeutics (7 years), Pharmacological Reviews (7 years), and Molecular Biotherapy (3 years). In recognition of his research achievements, Dr. Rosenblum has been invited to organize and chair numerous national and international conferences and was frequently invited to give talks at international and national meetings and institutions.

Dr. Rosenblum graduated from the University of South Carolina (Columbia) with a B.S. in Chemistry, received a Master's degree in Pharmacology from the Medical University of South Carolina (Charleston), and received a Ph.D. degree in Pharmacology from the University of Arizona College of Medicine (Tucson).