Laboratory of Tumor Biology
Laboratory of Tumor Biology (LTB) was founded in 2006 as a joint research facility of Department of Experimental Biology (Faculty of Science, Masaryk University) and Clinic of Children Oncology (Faculty of Medicine, Masaryk University and University Hospital Brno).
Research activities of LTB follow up on those of Laboratory of Tissue Cultures (Department of Biology, Faculty of Medicine, MUNI), whose primary field of study included induced differentiation and the role of cytoskeleton in the process of apoptosis in the years of 1996-2005 (prof. Veselská, assoc. prof. J. Neradil).
Since 2015, our team has been collaborating with the International Clinical Research Center of Saint Anne’s University Hospital (FNUSA-ICRC), in the LOTR research group (Laboratory Oncology Translational Research).
Laboratory focus
LTB facility is focused on solid tumor research, predominantly those of children’s age. All of our research projects are tightly connected to clinical application and our primary goal is to characterize biological attributes of tumors that could specify diagnosis and prognosis, thereby guiding the selection of the best suited therapy for each individual patient. Such attributes contribute to the elucidation of exact cellular and molecular mechanisms in the process of oncogenesis.
Our current research topics include:
- Receptor Tyrosine-kinase and MAP-kinase activity in pediatric tumors prone to relapse
- Mechanism of Cancer Stem Cells tumorigenesis in sarcomas
- Prognostic and predictive biomarkers in neurogenic solid tumors
- Combined anti-tumor therapy strategies
We routinely utilise primary, as well as reference cell lines of cancer origin, xenograft cancer models and archived samples of patient tumor tissue (in co-operation with several pathology facilities).
Co-operation
Our international research partners include:
- Michael Hogarty (Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, PA, USA)
- Lucília Saraiva (University of Porto, Portugal)
- Patric Jan Jansson (University of Sydney, Australia)
- Igor Adameyko (Medical University of Vienna, Austria & Karolinska Institutet, Sweden)
Furthermore, we collaborate with the following institutions:
- Regional center for applied and molecular oncology (RECAMO), Masaryk Institute of Oncology, Brno – Assoc. prof. Dalibor Valík, Dr. Petr Müller
- 1st Pathological-anatomical institute, St. Anne’s University Hospital, Brno – Dr. Iva Zambo, Prof. Markéta Hermanová
- 1st Orthopedic Clinic, St. Anne’s University Hospital – Dr. Michal Mahdal
Financial support
Our current research projects are funded by the following institutions:
