Researchers in the laboratory of KI member Sangeeta Bhatia identified two molecules, fibronectin and galectin-3, that can help cancer cells detach from tumors and spread throughout the body.  The team is now investigating the details of tumor cells’ interactions with the molecules, and working to develop new candidate therapeutics to inhibit those processes. read more
 

An MIT researchers from the Langer Lab have combined two different frequencies of ultrasound waves to make the skin more permeable to therapeutics. The technology could pave the way for noninvasive drug delivery or needle-free vaccinations, and may enhance the effectiveness of transdermal patches already in use, like nicotine patches. read more

The entertainment industry's most widely known effort to fight cancer raised $81M in September, including funds for a new pediatric cancer research 'Dream Team.' Overseen by a Scientific Advisory Committee led by KI member Phillip Sharp, and by the American Association for Cancer Research, SU2C supports several Dream Teams of researchers working to accelerate ground-breaking research and bring new treatments to patients as quickly as possible. Its Circulating Tumor Cell Chip Dream Team includes KI members Sangeeta Bhatia, Scott Manalis and Ram Saisekharan. read more
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The KI's Robert Langer is a senior author of a paper appearing this month in Advanced Materials, which profiles a new technique for controlling the spatial distribution of multiple cell types using tiny shapes made from a temperature-sensitive polymer. Among many applications, the microstructures can be used to replicate tumor microenvironments, thereby helping scientists understand the complex interactions between cancer cells and their surroundings, as well as advancing drug discovery. read more

Rudolf Jaenisch and his group have identified genetic markers that predict which cells can be successfully reprogrammed into pluripotent stem cells - cells with the ability to become any other type of cell.  Induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) hold great promise for treating many human diseases, and were the subject of this year's Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine. The Jaenisch laboratory’s findings, published in the September 13 online edition of Cell, could make the production of iPSCs more efficient in the future. read more

KI member Hidde Ploegh is one of four MIT researchers to win grants through the NIH's High Risk High Reward program, which funds innovative, risk-taking research programs. Ploegh plans to leverage unique protein-labeling technology developed in his lab to conduct a large scale identification of antibody targets, and to investigate the potential use of the antibodies to alter intracellular activity and cellular function. read more

In the first comprehensive genomic characterization of the lung cancer subtype, a group led partly by researchers at MIT, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and Harvard Medical School has identified a large number of the subtype's genetic alterations, including one that helps disable the immune system's ability to distinguish foreign invaders from its own tissue. Reported in the current issue of Nature, their findings point to several potential therapeutic targets, which the investigators hope will spur new clinical trials. read more