Assessing Risk Factors — A team of Einstein researchers led by Dr. Jan Vijg, and including co-principal investigators Drs. Yousin Suh, Simon Spivack, and Adam Auton, has received a “Provocative Questions” grant of $2.8 million over four years from the National Cancer Institute of NIH, which will support their investigation of the complex roles of aging and smoking in determining lung cancer risk. While it is well established that aging and smoking are the two greatest risk factors for lung cancer, it remains unclear why many non-smokers develop lung cancer even as many smokers are not affected in spite of years or decades of regular smoking. This paradox suggests there are factors other than age and smoking that either expose us to or protect us from disease risk. The research will specifically look into epigenetic factors—changes in the genome that alter gene function but do not involve changes in gene sequence—which are emerging as major determinants of cancer phenotypes, particularly in relation to aging and smoking. The researchers will assess differences in genetic and epigenetic patterns, particularly DNA methylation patterns, in human lung tissue biopsies from healthy and lung cancer patients of varying ages, in order to make connections between genetic variants and lung cancer risk. Genetic and epigenetic signatures found to be associated with age and higher lung cancer risk may serve as important biomarkers for targeting therapy. Dr. Vijg is professor and chair of genetics and professor of ophthalmology and visual sciences; Dr. Suh is professor of genetics and of medicine; Dr. Spivack is professor of genetics, of medicine and of epidemiology & population health, and chief of pulmonary medicine; and Dr. Auton is assistant professor of genetics and of epidemiology & population health.
Posted on: Monday, February 24, 2014