Work With Arabidopsis Could Lead to Cancer Treatment

UCLA plant biologist, Steven E. Jacobsen has been named an investigator of the Howard Hughes Medical Institute. Jacobsen is noted for using Arabidopsis as a model for understanding DNA methylation. “This process of methylation is fundamental to controlling growth and development in both plant and animal cells, and is important in some cancers: for example, cancer cells silence tumor suppressor genes through methylation and, as a result, uncontrolled cell growth occurs”(UCLA News).

The Howard Hughes Medical Institute Investigator Program contributed over US$650 million in funding to scientific investigators in 2004. The institute provides flexible funding, allowing researchers to pursue their own interests at their home institutions.

Link: UCLA Plant Biologist Steven E. Jacobsen Named Investigator of the Howard Hughes Medical Institute from UCLA News

Posted by Eric La Fountaine at 3:10 PM on April 8, 2005