Health
USC to Generate Data for Cancer Genome
- Peter W. Laird, director of the USC Epigenome Center
By Leslie Ridgeway on September 30, 2009 11:53 AM
The USC Epigenome Center has been awarded a $10.4 million National Cancer Institute grant that is expected to pave the way for more effective treatment and diagnosis for cancer patients.
The support for the USC Epigenome Center, which is affiliated with the USC Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center and the Keck School of Medicine of USC, will fund a collaborative effort with Johns Hopkins University to collect epigenomic data from all major types of cancer over the next five years.
The grant is part of a $5 billion infusion of new funds for cancer research and job creation announced on Sept. 30 by President Barack Obama at the National Institutes of Health. The funds for the National Institutes of Health will come from the $787 billion economic stimulus package.
The epigenomic data collected will contribute to The Cancer Genome Atlas, a long-term genome characterization and sequencing project funded by the National Cancer Institute and the National Human Genome Research Institute. The project is designed to provide a comprehensive “map” of molecular changes in cancer.
“The data we produce and analyze will lead to new targets for drug development and a better understanding of why some patients respond better to certain drug treatments than others,” said Peter W. Laird, director of the USC Epigenome Center and principal investigator along with Stephen Baylin of Johns Hopkins.
The Cancer Genome Atlas will produce and analyze data on several types of molecular changes, including mutations, chromosomal copy number alterations and gene expression. The USC Epigenome Center will be responsible for all epigenetic data production.
“The Cancer Genome Atlas will look at as many as 500 different samples of tumors and tissues from each cancer type to map the diversity of molecular changes within and between the different types of cancer,” said Peter Jones, director of the USC Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center and co-investigator on the grant. “It’s a huge operation and a wonderful boost to our cancer research program.”
Epigenomics is the study of how parts of the genome are packaged and marked to indicate whether genes are available for use in a particular type of cell or tissue.
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USC in the News
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The Chronicle of Higher Education mentioned USC’s $6 billion fundraising campaign. The story noted that USC had already raised $1 billion in a “quiet phase,” including the $200 million naming gift from USC Trustee and alumnus David Dornsife and wife Dana Dornsife to the USC Dornsife College.
The Guardian (U.K.) highlighted two major gifts to USC in a list of the 10 biggest philanthropic benefactors in America. The list included the $200 million naming gift from USC Trustee and alumnus David Dornsife and wife Dana Dornsife to the USC Dornsife College, and the $110 million gift from USC Trustee and USC Viterbi School alumnus John Mork and wife Julie to create the USC Mork Family Scholars Program.
The New York Times featured the USC U.S.-China Institute documentary “Assignment: China — The Week that Changed the World.” The documentary, part of a series, examines media coverage of the 1972 Nixon trip that reshaped U.S.-China relations after a quarter century of isolation and hostility. “People look back now and take it for granted that the outcome was preordained,” said the institute’s Mike Chinoy, who produced the documentary. Voice of America also featured the story.
Los Angeles Times featured the Oscar Senti-meter, a tool developed by the USC Annenberg School, Los Angeles Times and IBM that analyzes thousands of tweets about the Academy Awards nominees. The story noted that Mexican actor Demian Bechir received an enormous boost on Twitter the day of the nominations, with a total of 6,893 tweets mentioning him, a 47-fold increase from the day before. The story noted the tool uses language-recognition technology developed in collaboration with USC Viterbi School’s Signal Analysis and Interpretation Lab.
The Times of India (India) featured a three-day medical emergency training workshop organized in association with USC. At the workshop, held at GCS Medical College in India, 50 doctors and more than 100 paramedics learned how to improve emergency support systems. William Mallon of the Keck School of USC said that discussion topics included the use of portable ultrasonic devices to scan patients. “The ultrasound applications help physicians make accurate and timely decisions,” he noted. Daily News & Analysis (India) also featured the workshop.
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