Welcome to the BME lab website
Dr. Mark Evers
Professor, Department of Surgery and
Department of Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Robertson-Poth Distinguished Chair in General Surgery
Director, Sealy Center for Cancer Cell Biology
Director, UTMB Comprehensive Cancer Center
Our laboratory is focused on studying signaling mechanisms regulating normal intestinal growth and differentiation as well as understanding mechanisms related to gastrointestinal cancer growth and metastasis. Our laboratory has been continuously funded from the NIH since 1992, when we received a grant to study the intestinal hormone neurotensin. These studies, initiated in 1992, have continued as an NIH MERIT award, and we are currently assessing multiple aspects of neurotensin regulation, secretion and effects on target tissues. Other grants, supported by the NCI, NIDDK and NIA, are focused on the signaling mechanisms related to intestinal proliferation and differentiation and the effects of aging on intestinal tissues. The primary focus has been on PI3K signaling in the intestine and intestinal cancers, since work in our laboratory was among the first to define the effects of this pathway on normal intestinal proliferation and differentiation as well as downstream effector proteins such as the apoptotic protein TRAIL. These studies have led to important findings related to PI3K and colorectal cancers and have formed the basis of a SPORE project to evaluate directed therapies using siRNA for colorectal cancer metastasis. Our laboratory is highly translational in nature, interactive and we enjoy collaborations with a number of laboratories at UTMB as well as outside the institution. In addition, we are fortunate to have a T32 training grant which funds salaries for surgical housestaff to perform basic research and develop into future academic surgeons. Several of our trainees are now faculty members either at UTMB or other institutions. Our group is highly diverse which provides for a vibrant and interactive laboratory. The laboratory group consists of M.D./Ph.D. students, surgical fellows, post doctoral fellows and junior faculty. We are exceedingly proud of the work that we do and look forward to future translational possibilities for clinical therapies.
Contact Information:
Department of Surgery
The University of Texas Medical Branch
301 University Boulevard
Galveston, Texas 77555-0536
(409) 772-51612 |
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Sedonia Holmes, Coordinator II Department of Surgery |
(409) 772-5612 |
| Kathy Bass, Administrative Coordinator UTMB Comprehensive Cancer Center |
(409) 747-1935 |