How tumor stiffness alters immune cell behavior to escape destruction

Immunotherapy is based on harnessing a person’s own immune system to attack cancer cells. However, patients with certain tumors do not respond to these therapies and it remains unclear why.

In a new study that focused on breast cancer, first author Kevin Tharp, Ph.D., Kelly Kersten, Ph.D., and colleagues illuminate how the fibrotic tumor microenvironment creates an inhospitable milieu for anti-tumor immunity.

“Our findings help improve understanding of the mechanisms that regulate anti-tumor immune responses in fibrotic tumors and will aid the development of novel strategies to work in conjunction with immunotherapies to treat cancer patients," said Tharp.

Read more >>

A protein component of nuclear pore complexes regulates development of blood cells and may contribute to myeloid disorders

Nuclear pore complexes (NPCs) are channels composed of multiple proteins that ferry molecules in and out of the nucleus, regulating many critical cellular functions, such as gene expression, chromatin organization and RNA processes that influence cell survival, proliferation and differentiation.

In recent years, work by Maximiliano D’Angelo, Ph.D., has shown that NPCs in cancer cells are different, but how these alterations contribute to malignancy and tumor development—or even how NPCs function in normal cells—is poorly understood.

In a new study, D’Angelo and colleagues uncovered Nup358, one of roughly 30 proteins that form the NPCs, as an early player in the development of myeloid cells, blood cells that if not formed or working properly lead to myeloid disorders such as leukemias.

Read more >>

Sanford Burnham Prebys celebrates first graduate school Commencement ceremony

The Sanford Burnham Prebys Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences held its first-ever Commencement ceremony to celebrate nearly 20 years of educating future scientists.

Alessandra Sacco, Ph.D., dean of the Institute’s Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences, delivered the Commencement address.

“Hold onto perseverance and trust in yourself as you move forward,” said Sacco. “Never forget the sacrifices you have made, the hours in the lab and the failed experiments that have shaped you into better researchers.”

Read more >>

Pride flag flies proudly at Sanford Burnham Prebys

Sanford Burnham Prebys recognized the beginning of Pride month with a Pride flag-raising event on Friday, June 7, 2024. The gathering included an opportunity for speakers in a variety of roles throughout the Institute to share comments on the meaning of the Pride flag in their lives and careers.

Patrick Kearney, Ph.D., director of medicinal chemistry in the Prebys Center, commented, “After I joined the Institute last year and saw the Pride flag flying for the first time, I was incredibly moved. It was the first time I’d seen this happen in 40 years as a scientist. While it may seem simple, it is far from trivial, and it tells me that things are different here.”  

Read more >>

A confocal micrograph of an adult transgenic zebrafish head showing blood vessels (blue), lymphatic vessels (yellow) and the skin and scales (magenta).

Image courtesy of Daniel Castranova and Brant M. Weinstein, NIH.

Opinion: There’s a secret to living long and healthy. Just follow this.

In his latest San Diego Union-Tribune essay, David Brenner shares research on how living a vigorous life: walking, gardening and enjoying sex well into the golden years, can lead to a longer well-lived life.

Read more >>

Join us

Please join Sanford Burnham Prebys as a partner in discovery. Our world-class research programs are dedicated to finding cures for human disease to help individuals and their families. Your gift helps our scientists advance medical research to save lives.