Pathology Graduate Training Program
Cellular and Molecular Pathology (CMP) -
Current Graduate Students

Name: Evan Delgado
Email: evd7@pitt.edu

Lab Phone: 412-383-7821

Education:
Undergraduate Degree: Bachelor of Science
Undergraduate Institution: State University of New York at Albany
Undergraduate Major: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

Research Project Information

Angiogenesis is vital to the development of HCC and these tumors are known to over-express a number of ligands, which induce angiogenesis. These include VEGF, EGF (betacellulin), Ephrin A2, and Ang2. Interestingly, the Wnt/ beta-catenin pathway that is active in around 30% of HCC independently plays a role in regulating the expression of various such ligands like VEGF, FGF 4 and FGF9. In conjunction, Monga lab has reported high cytoplasmic, nuclear beta-catenin protein, and Wnt/Fz genes in endothelial cells in normal liver during development and adulthood, possibly regulating the expression of receptors such as EGFR, Met, and PDGFR and thus maybe contributing to endothelial cell homeostasis. Thus these paracrine interactions under the control of Wnt signaling may be contributing to the growth and development of blood vessels, which supply nutrition to the growing tumor, which is the overarching hypothesis of my proposal.

In order to develop these ideas we intend to propose two aims, which are distinct and are designed to investigate if there is a key link between the process of angiogenesis and the Wnt/beta-catenin pathway through the use of endothelial cells and HCC cells.

Awards :

Angiopathy Training Program Fellow

Publications: