Giselle Mondragon
Research Mentor(s): Liangyou Rui
Mentor Department: Molecular and Integrative Physiology (MIP)
Authors:
Session: Session 6 (3:00pm – 3:50pm)
Presentation Type: Poster 11
Abstract
Liver Cancer affects a small number of our population but the damage that happens to an individual is striking. Investigating its pathways and all its fragments is key to understanding how the presence of certain molecules may develop into malignancies. NF-kB inducing kinase (NIK) is highly activated in liver injury while also inducing biliary hyperplasia by stimulating cholangiocyte proliferation which leads to deep biliary dilation. Recent findings suggest that NIK takes part in liver cancer progression, it becomes highly over activated which leads to cancerous growth on the liver. Although this is noted there is no clear evidence that the downstream molecular mechanisms of NIK are actually contributing to cancerous growth. In this study we aim to identify the targeted genes of NIK in liver cancer cells. In order to achieve this we utilized an adenovirus in order to over express NIK in HuCC-T1 cancer cells . Following the over expression of it we then followed it by extracting RNA and then analyzing it using quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) to evaluate the potential expression of candidate genes that are regulated by NIK. After identifying the candidate genes, this study allows us to gain a deeper understanding of the signaling pathways that drive the liver cancer progression. Additionally it informs us of other therapeutic interventions that may help to reduce the development of any sort of cancerous cells.
