Grant: Project Grant

Cellular senescence is a tumor suppressor mechanism that plays a dual role in biology. The acute senescent response to cancer-causing stimuli is beneficial since it helps to prevent tumors by halting cell proliferation and stimulating immune-mediated clearance of stressed cells. However, senescent cells that accumulate in tissues with age contribute to chronic inflammation and aging. It is thus clear that understanding molecular and cellular mechanisms that control cellular senescence will open the way for the successful identification of compounds that can be used to treat both cancer and age-related diseases. The overall goal of the proposal is to gain critical insights into the mechanisms of cellular senescence, identify new tumor suppressors that mediate the process and oncogenic mechanisms that allow cancer cell to bypass it. The latter can be targets to develop novel anti-cancer therapies.