Migration and Metastasis Program Members

J. Thomas Parsons, Ph.D., Program Leader

Professor and Chair, Department of Microbiology

Role of cell adhesion signaling in cell migration and cancer cell metastasis. 

Gary Balian, Ph.D.

Professor of Orthopedics, Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics

Biochemistry of extracellular matrix molecules, role of the bone microenvironment in normal and metastatic cell growth.

Todd W. Bauer, M.D.

Assistant Professor, Division of Surgical Oncology

Tumor cell migration, invasion, metastasis, growth factor signalling

Brett Blackman, Ph.D.

Assistant Professor of Biomedical Engineering

Role of cellular factors in regulating endothelial cell organization in normal and cancer cell vasculature. 

George S. Bloom, Ph.D.

Professor of Biology and Cell Biology

Regulation of cell adhesion, migration and cancer cell growth and metastasis by modulators of Rho family proteins.

James E. Casanova, Ph.D.

Associate Professor of Cell Biology and Microbiology

Role of vesicular transport processes in regulating cell motility and invasion.

Douglas DeSimone, Ph.D.

Professor of Cell Biology

The role of extracellular matrix cell in the regulation of cell adhesion, migration and differentiation. 

Jay W. Fox, Ph.D.

Professor of Microbiology

Role of extracellular matrix and proteinases in cancer cell migration and invasion.

Robert Grainger, Ph.D.

Professor of Biology

Regulation of genes that determine tissue organization and differentiation.

Barry Gumbiner, Ph.D.

Professor of Cell Biology

The roles of cadherins and catenins in cell-cell interactions, tumor growth and metastasis.

Brian P. Helmke, Ph.D.

Assistant Professor of Biomedical Engineering

Intracellular Mechanics and Cell Function

Alan F. Horwitz, Ph.D.

Professor of Cell Biology and Microbiology

Regulation of cell adhesion dynamics and cell migration of normal and cancer cells. 

Gordon W. Laurie, Ph.D.

Associate Professor of Cell Biology

Characterization of extracellular regulators of epithelial differentiation in normal and cancer cells.

Colleen McNamara, M.D.

Associate Professor  of Medicine/Cardiology

Phenotypic modulation and cellular proliferation in cancer cells.

Gary K. Owens, Ph.D.

Professor of Molecular Physiology & Biological Physics

Cellular and molecular mechanisms that control growth and differentiation of vascular smooth muscle cells during vasculogenesis/angiogenesis. 

Dorothy Schafer, Ph.D.

Associate Professor of Biology and Cell Biology

Regulation of the dynamics of actin filaments and of membranes during cell migration of normal and cancer cells.

Martin A. Schwartz, Ph.D.

Professor of Microbiology

Integrin signaling and its functional role in cell motility, growth, mechanotransduction and cancer.

Frank Shen, M.D.

Assistant Professor, Orthopaedic Surgery

Spinal fusion, spinal cord injury and regeneration

Amy Tucker, M.D.

Associate Professor of Medicine/Cardiology

Role of adenosine receptors in modulating angiogenesis.

Judith M. White, Ph.D.

Professor of Cell Biology

The role of ADAMs, a large group of cell surface proteins in normal and cancer cell growth and migration.

Member list current as of February 2008