Bauer Lab
About
The primary focus of the Bauer laboratory is to determine the drivers of tumor growth and metastasis in pancreatic cancer and colorectal cancer in order to identify novel approaches to therapy. Our projects are detailed below.
CRISPR Screening and scRNAseq
Our group was one of the first to perform in vivo CRISPR screening. We used this cutting edge technology to discover candidate genes and therapeutic targets with potential to resensitize tumors to chemotherapy. Similarly, we have utilized single cell RNA sequencing to identify genes involved in the dynamics of tumor cell metastasis. These projects fuel many collaborative grants with aims to understand the mechanistic properties and identify therapeutic vulnerabilities of cancer.
PDAC Metabolism, Tumor Progression and Metastasis
Cancer cells have diverse energy demands that evolve through tumor establishment, progression, metastasis, and therapeutic resistance. Collaborations with metabolism, immunology, and systems biology experts are focused on how tumor cells meet their energy demands and how those changes influence the tumor microenvironment to support the tumor through stressful events, such as metastasis and chemotherapy.
Preclinical Models
Translational research is at the center of our mission with Dr. Bauer aiming to bring therapies directly to his patients. We believe that although no model is perfect, cancer is best studied in its native environment.
Our preclinical models allow pancreatic cancer to be studied and treated while growing in the pancreas, colorectal cancer while growing in the colon, and metastatic disease while growing in the liver (the most common site of metastasis for both pancreatic and colorectal cancers). With valuable experience in preclinical surgery and growing tumor tissue banks, the diversity of human tumors is replicated in the laboratory setting the stage for success in the human clinic.
We believe that collaboration and team science are exponential in the advancement of research and development of novel therapies.
Ongoing Collaborative Projects
- Kashatus lab; Mitochondrial dynamics in pancreatic and colorectal cancers
- Wotton lab; Fatty acid metabolism in colorectal cancer
- Lazzara lab; Epithelial to mesechymal transition in pancreatic cancer
- Dolatshahi lab; Maximizing macrophage anti tumor function in colorectal cancer
- Lazzara and Peirce-Cottler labs; Pericyte lineage and tissue fibrosis in pancreatic cancer
- Swami lab; Tumor cell impedence and deformability characterization
- Slingluff, Cook, Witt, Mauldin, He, Bauer team; Advancing the therapeutic options for SAS1B in various cancers
- He lab; Pretargeted radiotheranosics for precision cancer therapy
- Taite lab; Matrix composition of pancreatic cancer
- Papin, Kashatus, Fallahi-Sichani team; Iterative imaging of mitochondrial dynamics in pancreatic tumor tissues
- Papin, Kashatus, Wotton, Zoellner team; Sugary sweetened beverages and impact on colorectal cancer microbiome
- Papin, Kashatus, Wotton, Little team; Impact of nicotine pouch use in the progression of colorectal cancer
- SASCO team; A systems-metabolism approach to identify mitochondrial vulnerabilities in colorectal cancer
Funding
- NIH R01 – Wotton, Bauer – Title: Role of ACSS2 in colon cancer
- NIH U54 – Lazzara, Papin, Wotton, Kashatus, Bauer – Title: Systems analysis of stress-adapted cancer organelles (SASCO)
- UVA School of Medicine Gap funding – Fallahi-Sichani, Kashatus, Bauer – Title: Defining the relationship between mitochondrial structural heterogeneity and metabolic plasticity in pancreatic tumor progression and liver metastasis.
- UVA Cancer Center GI TRT – Kashatus, Bauer, Papin, Little – Title: Exploring tumor promoting properties of nicotine pouches in colorectal cancer
- UVA Cancer Center CRX – Lazzara, Sheybani, Peirce-Cottler, Bauer – Title: Investigating FUS-driven, hypoxia-mediated EMT in pancreas cancer as an unintended but druggable mechanism of acquired malignant cell chemoresistance
- Wallace H. Coulter Foundation – Green, Kelly, Bauer – Title: Development of Janus nanoparticles to cure pancreatic cancer
- UVA Cancer Center Single Investigator Grant – Peirce-Cottler, Lazzara, Bauer – Title: Combining a Novel Explant Culture Model with Computer Modeling to Study Microvascular Adaptations in Pancreatic Ductal Adenocarcinoma (PDAC)
- UVA Cancer Center Collaborative Pilot – Papin, Kashatus, Zoellner, Wotton, Bauer – Title: Microbiome processing of dietary lipids and effects on colorectal cancer metabolism
- Wallace H. Coulter Foundation Seed Grant – Dolatshahi, Bauer – Title: Dual-acting Fc-modified anti-EGFR Antibodies to Maximize Macrophage Anti-Tumor Function in Colorectal Cancer
We have a highly engaged group of patients and friends who have been instrument in supporting our research efforts through philanthropy.
Our Team
- Todd Bauer, MD, Professor
- Sara Adair, MS, Lab Manager
- Xiaolong Wei, PhD, Research Scientist
- Vicki Remley, PhD Candidate
Undergraduate Students:
- Andy Cao
- Graham Lenert
- Ellerie Tauber
- Varna Selvakumar
- Khushi Rana
- Diya Ghosh
- Adeline Chunton
Post-doctoral Researchers:
- Michaela Cunningham MD
- Will Kane MD
- Bernadette Goudreau MD
- Alex Michaels MD
- Matthew Mullen MD
- Timothy Newhook MD
- James Lindberg MD
- Dustin Walters MD
- Jayme Stokes MD
Former Lab Specialists:
- Cheryl Borgman
- Catharine Cowan
- Bryce Lowry
Former Graduate Students:
- Sarbajeet Nagdas MD, PhD
Former Undergraduate Researchers:
- Olivia Sheridan
- Brianna Murphy
- Sofia Megert
- Delaney Sears-Webb
- Sidney Chong
- Kayla Thomas
- Kathryn McGonagle
- Denis Liu
- Jesse Persily
- Alison Kim