Cancer Program

Southern Research has had long-standing success in cancer research. Six FDA-approved anticancer drugs (lomustine, carmustine, dacarbazine, fludarabine, clofarabine, and pralatrexate) and one cytoprotective agent (Ethyol) to reduce toxicities associated with cancer chemotherapy and radiotherapy have been discovered at Southern Research.

The Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology has broad research interests in tumor cell biology, mechanism of action of chemotherapeutic drugs, and development of novel therapeutic targets. The Department has strong research programs that are focused on 1) elucidating molecular mechanisms of angiogenesis, apoptosis, and cell-cycle regulation, 2) understanding mechanisms of drug resistance, and 3) drug discovery based on purine and pyrimidine metabolism. The Department also has strong research interests in cancer chemoprevention with focused programs in retinoids and nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs to investigate mechanism of action and enhance efficacy, while minimizing toxicity.

Learn about Senior Staff and their research programs.

• Lidija Klampfer, Ph.D.
• Yonghe Li, Ph.D.
• William Parker, Ph.D.
• Jaideep Thottassery, Ph.D.
• Bo Xu, M.D., Ph.D.