Rafael A. Fridman, PhD
Targeting collagen-initiated pro-malignant programs in pancreatic cancer
A striking hallmark of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) is the dense, collagen-rich fibrotic scar tissue inside the tumor. It is linked to tumor growth, drug resistance and metastasis, and acts as a barrier to delivering drugs. The project focuses on the Discoidin Domain Receptors (DDRs), which send pro-tumor signals in response to collagen. Earlier work in both labs identified DDR1 as a key player in PDAC progression: in a mouse model of human pancreatic cancer, tumors progress significantly more slowly in mice engineered without the DDR1 gene. The team has obtained a small-molecule DDR1 inhibitor and plans to test in mouse models whether it extends survival by slowing tumor progression and metastasis.
Dr. Rafael Fridman is a professor in the Department of Pathology at the Wayne State University School of Medicine and a scientific member of the Tumor and Microenvironment Program at the Karmanos Cancer Institute in Detroit. His Sky-funded research, in collaboration with Howard Crawford, PhD, investigates the role of fibrosis in pancreatic cancer, with a focus on how cancer cells interact with collagen.
Seed grants start at $50,000 — awarded by scientists, reported on annually.
Donate →Rafael A. Fridman, PhD
Targeting collagen-initiated pro-malignant programs in pancreatic cancer
A striking hallmark of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) is the dense, collagen-rich fibrotic scar tissue inside the tumor. It is linked to tumor growth, drug resistance and metastasis, and acts as a barrier to delivering drugs. The project focuses on the Discoidin Domain Receptors (DDRs), which send pro-tumor signals in response to collagen. Earlier work in both labs identified DDR1 as a key player in PDAC progression: in a mouse model of human pancreatic cancer, tumors progress significantly more slowly in mice engineered without the DDR1 gene. The team has obtained a small-molecule DDR1 inhibitor and plans to test in mouse models whether it extends survival by slowing tumor progression and metastasis.
Dr. Rafael Fridman is a professor in the Department of Pathology at the Wayne State University School of Medicine and a scientific member of the Tumor and Microenvironment Program at the Karmanos Cancer Institute in Detroit. His Sky-funded research, in collaboration with Howard Crawford, PhD, investigates the role of fibrosis in pancreatic cancer, with a focus on how cancer cells interact with collagen.
Seed grants start at $50,000 — awarded by scientists, reported on annually.
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