Affymetrix to Sponsor New Webinar Focusing on the Importance of Understanding lncRNAs in Breast Cancer Progression and Tumorigenesis
Yorba Linda, Ca (PRWEB) September 29, 2016 -- Breast cancer is the most commonly diagnosed cancer in women and is the second leading cause of cancer death among women. Hundreds of thousands of women worldwide lose their battle against this cancer each year, and it is estimated that one in eight US women will develop invasive breast cancer in her lifetime.
The heterogeneity of breast cancer, with its unique subtypes and genetic mutation profiles, makes developing biomarkers and targeted therapies especially important. The current standard-of-care for most breast cancers is an aggressive course of therapy to prevent progression and metastasis, yet considerable overtreatment is known to occur. It is critically important to identify the underlying mechanisms driving breast cancer progression and to find novel biomarkers for early detection, prognosis, prediction of therapy response, and to better inform patient treatment options.
Long considered to be genomic “junk,” long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) have recently gained widespread attention as critical regulators of coding RNA and alternative splicing, and their dysregulation has been associated with tumorigenesis, tumor progression, and metastasis. With only recent focus, lncRNAs represent a vast source of largely unstudied potential molecular drivers of human cancer, emerging as a new class of promising cancer biomarkers and therapeutic agents.
Affymetrix will have two speakers for this breast cancer webinar, who will address how these profiling arrays can identify lncRNA and lead to cancer biomarkers. First will be Rebecca DeVaux, PhD, a post-doctoral associate at the Cancer Research Center at the University at Albany, State University of New York. The second speaker will be Alfredo Hidalgo-Miranda, PhD, head of Cancer Genomics Laboratory at the National Institute of Genomic Medicine in Mexico.
DeVaux received her bachelor of science in biochemistry at Virginia Tech; she later earned a doctorate in pharmacology from the University of North Carolina. Her graduate training focused on understanding mechanisms of resistance to anti-mitotic targeted chemotherapeutics in lung cancer. For this work she integrated both medium and high-throughput screening platforms to discover new therapeutic entry points. In 2014 DeVaux joined the Cancer Research Center at the University of Albany, where she is investigating the role of long non-coding RNAs in promoting breast cancer progression. She is also the winner of the prestigious U.S. Department of Defense Breast Cancer Research Program Breakthrough Award.
Hidalgo-Miranda graduated with honors from the National University of Mexico with a bachelor’s degree in biology. He later received doctorate degree in biomedical sciences from the faculty of medicine from the same university. In 2004 he joined the National Institute of Genomic Medicine in Mexico City where he has participated in several projects, including the analysis of genomic diversity of the Mexican population and setting up the genomic analyses core laboratories. Since 2013 Hidalgo-Miranda has lead the Cancer Genomics Laboratory of the INMEGEN, where his main research focus is the systematic analysis of somatic alterations leading to human cancer, using high-throughput genomic analysis tools in order to identify changes in the genome and transcriptome of breast tumors.
Both speakers will be available after the presentation for a live Q&A.
LabRoots will be hosting the event, beginning at 8:00 a.m. PT, 11:00 a.m. on November 16, 2016. To register for this event, read full event details or discover future events, click here.
About Affymetrix:
Affymetrix technologies enable multiplex and simultaneous analysis of biological systems at the cell,
protein, and gene level, facilitating the rapid translation of benchtop research into clinical and routine
use for human health and wellness. Affymetrix, part of Thermo Fisher Scientific, provides leadership and
support, partnering with customers in pharmaceutical, diagnostic, and biotechnology companies and
leading academic, government, and nonprofit research institutes in their quest to use biology for a better world.
About LabRoots:
LabRoots is the leading scientific social networking website and producer of educational virtual events and webinars. Contributing to the advancement of science through content sharing capabilities, LabRoots is a powerful advocate in amplifying global networks and communities. Founded in 2008, LabRoots emphasizes digital innovation in scientific collaboration and learning, and is a primary source for current scientific news, webinars, virtual conferences, and more. LabRoots has grown into the world’s largest series of virtual events within the Life Sciences and Clinical Diagnostics community.
Karen Sorenson, LabRoots, Inc., http://www.LabRoots.com, +1 (619) 861-0590, [email protected]
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