Dr. Phillip Koeffler studies the cellular and molecular biology of cancer focusing on glioblastoma multiforme, breast and lung cancers and leukemias/lymphomas. He has performed a SNP Chip analysis on more than 2000 cancers of different varieties and used these data to develop new diagnostic and prognostic indicators of various cancers, as well as to identify novel alterations in these cancers. He is doing exon sequencing and paired – end tagged sequencing of selective leukemia and cancer samples at the time of diagnosis, remission and relapse in order to define the complete genomic changes at diagnosis and relapse. In addition, he actively studies the anti-cancer activity of novel compounds including those from various medicinal plants, nuclear hormone receptor ligands and fusions of monoclonal antibodies conjugated to various agents. He is also associating in vitro and in vivo efficacy of a novel compound with the genomic signature of the cancer.

Additional research within Koeffler’s lab include:

1. Studies of an adaptor protein LNK that interacts with activated tyrosine kinase receptors and inhibits the activity of these activated receptors.
2. Studies of the dysregulation of circadian rhythm genes in cancer particularly focusing on PER-1 and PER-2.
3. Studies of transcription factors particularly their anti-microbial stimulatory activities in hypoxic conditions.