A Target for the Development of Diagnostics and Therapeutics for Abnormal Hematopoiesis

The zinc finger protein ZFP36L2 has been shown by the inventors to play an essential role in hematopoiesis, a process that is dysregulated in hematological cancers, anemia, and other conditions. Thus, ZFP36L2 has promise for use in a diagnostic test to detect abnormal hematopoiesis, or as a target for the development of therapeutics to treat abnormal hematopoiesis.

Reversible SNAP-Tag and CLIP-Tag Ligands for Live Cell Imaging

Recently-developed protein tags enable the specific covalent attachment of synthetic ligands, incorporating fluorophores or other substituted groups, to fusion proteins containing these tags. For example, SNAP and CLIP tags bind O6-benzylguanine-containing and O2-benzylcytosine containing ligands respectively, which can be derivatized with a wide variety of labels, including fluorescent dyes, affinity probes, and cross-linkers.

Stat1LoxP (Stat1 tm1Mam ) Mouse Model for Oncology and Immunology Studies

Selective inactivation of Stat1 in mammary cells indicates that its effect as a tumor suppressor in breast is direct.

STAT1 is considered a tumor suppressor, but it is not known if this effect occurs directly in mammary cells or secondarily by disrupting interferon signaling through the JAK/STAT1 pathway to induce immune responses. ERBB2/neu-induced breast cancer appeared sooner in mice lacking STAT1 only in mammary cells than in wild-type mice, indicating that STAT1 tumor suppression was intrinsic to mammary cells and not secondary to an induced immune response.