DHSA Pilot Projects:

Project Title: "Androgen Receptor and Prostate Cancer"

Co-Investigators: Robert Sikes, UD, Karen Knudsen, TJU, Ayyappan Rajasekaran, Nemours, and Charles Schneider, Christiana Care.

Background and Significance:

Initially, prostate cancer is sensitive to the levels of male steroid hormones or androgens. Removal of the androgens (Male Sex Hormones), by surgical or chemical castration, is still a gold standard for prostate cancer therapy. For a time, the cancer responds by regressing under the conditions of androgen deprivation. However, the cancer invariably adapts and continues growing in the absence of androgens or in the presence of reduced levels of androgens. The cancer then shifts from being androgen dependent or sensitive to an androgen insensitive state. The term now being used is, castration-resistant prostate cancer or CRPC. The development of metastases, along with the shift from androgen sensitive to androgen insensitive is termed progression. Despite the importance of understanding androgen action in the prostate, little is understood about the mechanisms underlying androgen dependence, and the means by which the androgen requirement is bypassed in relapsed tumors. This project is concerned with the mechanism(s) that contribute to the development of advanced and castration-resistant prostate cancer as defined above and delineating the molecular mechanisms that govern these events. The project will also evaluate combined androgen blockade therapy to convert RT-PCR detection of prostate-specific antigen (PSA) and prostate-specific membrane antigen (PSMA) transcripts from positive to negative in the peripheral blood of patients with clinically localized prostate cancer and in animal xenograft models with and without castration.

Knowledge gained from these studies could potentially increase biochemical failure-free survival after curative therapy for patients with prostate cancer. It is also important to note that the next major cancer screening project in Delaware by the Delaware Cancer Consortium will be for prostate cancer.

Specific Aims:

The goal of this proposal is to build up translational research program studying biological significance of JAM-A and its relationship to post-MI complications. The proposal includes three goals.

  • Aim 1: Influence of bone marrow stromal (BMS) cells on the establishment of PCa in the bone microenvironment and development of CRPC.
  • Aim 2: Elucidating the role of PSMA in CRPC.
  • Aim 3: Determine the influence of cell cycle aberrations on AR signaling and CRPC growth in the bone microenvironment.

RECENT PRESS

Health experts to address issues in education, research, practice
January 26, 2012--DHSA will hold its inaugural Global Health Symposium on Saturday, Feb. 4 at CCHS. The program will focus on education, research and practice, with presentations on topics ranging from refugee health clinics and relief medicine to anthropological approaches to the study of global health.
Christiana Care issues a call to men to prevent domestic violence
January 24, 2012--Christiana Care, a National Community Center of Excellence in Women's Health, has been working for years to help women who are victims of domestic violence at an annual event that offers resources, education and support.
After Holiday Eating Marathon, Jefferson Dietitian Offers 10 Tips to Get Back on Track and Kick Start New Year's Weight Loss Resolution
January 4, 2012--Celebrating the New Year goes hand-in-hand with creating resolutions to get healthy and trim - especially after weeks of holiday marathon eating. Dietitian Emily Rubin, R.D., L.D., with the Division of Gastroenterology at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital, says you can stay committed to being healthy and fit by following these 10 tips.
Procedure saves teen after rare carotid trauma
January 4, 2012--Neurointerventionalist Gregg Zoarski, M.D.'s recent surgical grand rounds lecture on carotid artery injuries focused on how to repair traumatic injuries to these vital vessels that supply blood to the brain.
Medical students delighted with Delaware branch campus Christiana Care is participating in Jefferson Medical College’s Delaware Branch Campus program, underscoring the transformative role the health system plays in medical education.
December 23, 2011--This achievement specifically spotlights our core competency in providing clinical education to third- and fourth-year medical students. Christiana Care has a long-standing relationship in providing first-rate medical education to students from Jefferson, one of the country's top-rated medical collleges.
Healthy Kids Delaware (HKD) Network celebrated its one-year anniversary earlier this month.
December 22, 2011--Earlier this month the Healthy Kids Delaware (HKD) network celebrated its one-year anniversary. The Healthy Kids Delaware network has been working to address health and wellness needs of children throughout New Castle County.
Interprofessional Care for the 21st Century: Redefining Education and Practice
December 14, 2011--Registration is now open for Jefferson InterProfessional Education Center's (JCIPE) 2012 conference: Interprofessional Care for the 21st Century: Redefining Education and Practice. The conference will be held on May 18-19, 2012 at Dorrance H. Hamilton Building, Thomas Jefferson University, Philadelphia, PA. The purpose of this conference is to showcase scholarly work and works in progress advancing interprofessional education and/or practice. This conference reflects on innovative implementation and evaluation strategies of the interprofessional competencies.
Nemours participates in Partnership for a Healthier America Summit
December 8, 2011--The Partnership, of which Nemours is a founding member, has a mission of supporting First Lady Michelle Obama's Let's Move! campaign by working with the private sector to fight childhood obesity. The theme that emerged at the summit, a gathering of leaders from business and industry, academia, nonprofits and government, was: "Make the healthy choice the easy choice."
DHSA plans workshop on collaborative education for clinicians and scientists
December 8, 2011--DHSA will host "Creating Clinical and Research Teams for the Future: Workshop on Collaborative Education for Clinicians and Scientists" on Tuesday, Jan. 10, 2012, at the Ammon Education Center of Christiana Hospital. This workshop focuses on developing skills to write educational grants. The program will include information on how to obtain educational grant funding, set goals and evaluate an educational program, and develop an application for the DHSA Education Pilot Award.