Thu 16 Apr 09:30: Mutational signatures: From bytes to bedside
Abstract not available
- Speaker: Prof Serena Nik-Zainal, NIHR Research Professor in Genomic Medicine and Bioinfromatics
- Thursday 16 April 2026, 09:30-10:30
- Venue: Theo Chalmers Lecture Theatre (LT2) School of Clinical Medicine.
- Series: Cancer Research UK Cambridge Centre Lectures in Cancer Biology and Medicine; organiser: Justin Holt.
Thu 16 Apr 09:30: Mutational signatures: From bytes to bedside
Abstract not available
- Speaker: Prof Serena Nik-Zainal, NIHR Research Professor in Genomic Medicine and Bioinfromatics
- Thursday 16 April 2026, 09:30-10:30
- Venue: Theo Chalmers Lecture Theatre (LT2) School of Clinical Medicine.
- Series: Cancer Research UK Cambridge Centre Lectures in Cancer Biology and Medicine; organiser: Justin Holt.
Mon 18 May 12:30: TBC
Mon 18 May 12:30: TBC
TBC
- Speaker: Luke Gilbert, PhD, Associate Professor of Urology, University of California, San Francisco
- Monday 18 May 2026, 12:30-13:30
- Venue: CRUK CI Lecture Theatre.
- Series: Seminars on Quantitative Biology @ CRUK Cambridge Institute ; organiser: .
Mon 27 Apr 12:30: Life, death, and the discovery of PDAR: the Pol II Degradation-dependent Apoptotic Response
Talk Title: Life, death, and the discovery of PDAR : the Pol II Degradation-dependent Apoptotic Response
Abstract: Many cellular functions are considered “life essential”, but why are they actually essential? Why does a cell die, for instance, when transcription or translation are inhibited, and can we improve cancer therapies by developing a more complete understanding of how cellular life/death decisions are made? To answer these questions, we developed a suite of new tools for studying all forms of cell death. Using these tools, we discovered a previously uncharacterized signaling pathway that we named the Pol II Degradation-dependent Apoptotic Response (PDAR). Activation of PDAR drives the lethality of transcriptional inhibition, and in the absence of PDAR , cells will survive in the absence of transcription. This seminar will focus on how we discovered the PDAR pathway, the contribution of PDAR to cancer therapies, and how this discovery changes our understanding of essentiality and what is (and isn’t) intrinsically stressful to cells.
Current Research/bio: Mike Lee is a Professor of Systems Biology at the UMass Chan Medical School. His research program is focused on Systems Pharmacology of anti-cancer therapies, with an emphasis on understanding the signaling and regulatory mechanisms controlling drug-induced cell death. He is originally from Seattle, Washington, and received his academic training at the University of Washington (BS, Statistics/Cell Biology), the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (PhD, Pharmacology), and MIT (postdoctoral fellowship with Mike Yaffe).
- Speaker: Mike Lee PhD, Associate Professor Department of Systems Biology, UMass Chan Medical School
- Monday 27 April 2026, 12:30-13:30
- Venue: CRUK CI Lecture Theatre.
- Series: Seminars on Quantitative Biology @ CRUK Cambridge Institute ; organiser: .
Mon 27 Apr 12:30: Life, death, and the discovery of PDAR: the Pol II Degradation-dependent Apoptotic Response
Talk Title: Life, death, and the discovery of PDAR : the Pol II Degradation-dependent Apoptotic Response
Abstract: Many cellular functions are considered “life essential”, but why are they actually essential? Why does a cell die, for instance, when transcription or translation are inhibited, and can we improve cancer therapies by developing a more complete understanding of how cellular life/death decisions are made? To answer these questions, we developed a suite of new tools for studying all forms of cell death. Using these tools, we discovered a previously uncharacterized signaling pathway that we named the Pol II Degradation-dependent Apoptotic Response (PDAR). Activation of PDAR drives the lethality of transcriptional inhibition, and in the absence of PDAR , cells will survive in the absence of transcription. This seminar will focus on how we discovered the PDAR pathway, the contribution of PDAR to cancer therapies, and how this discovery changes our understanding of essentiality and what is (and isn’t) intrinsically stressful to cells.
Current Research/bio: Mike Lee is a Professor of Systems Biology at the UMass Chan Medical School. His research program is focused on Systems Pharmacology of anti-cancer therapies, with an emphasis on understanding the signaling and regulatory mechanisms controlling drug-induced cell death. He is originally from Seattle, Washington, and received his academic training at the University of Washington (BS, Statistics/Cell Biology), the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (PhD, Pharmacology), and MIT (postdoctoral fellowship with Mike Yaffe).
- Speaker: Mike Lee PhD, Associate Professor Department of Systems Biology, UMass Chan Medical School
- Monday 27 April 2026, 12:30-13:30
- Venue: CRUK CI Lecture Theatre.
- Series: Seminars on Quantitative Biology @ CRUK Cambridge Institute ; organiser: .
Mon 27 Apr 12:30: Life, death, and the discovery of PDAR: the Pol II Degradation-dependent Apoptotic Response
Talk Title: Life, death, and the discovery of PDAR : the Pol II Degradation-dependent Apoptotic Response
Abstract: Many cellular functions are considered “life essential”, but why are they actually essential? Why does a cell die, for instance, when transcription or translation are inhibited, and can we improve cancer therapies by developing a more complete understanding of how cellular life/death decisions are made? To answer these questions, we developed a suite of new tools for studying all forms of cell death. Using these tools, we discovered a previously uncharacterized signaling pathway that we named the Pol II Degradation-dependent Apoptotic Response (PDAR). Activation of PDAR drives the lethality of transcriptional inhibition, and in the absence of PDAR , cells will survive in the absence of transcription. This seminar will focus on how we discovered the PDAR pathway, the contribution of PDAR to cancer therapies, and how this discovery changes our understanding of essentiality and what is (and isn’t) intrinsically stressful to cells.
Current Research/bio: Mike Lee is a Professor of Systems Biology at the UMass Chan Medical School. His research program is focused on Systems Pharmacology of anti-cancer therapies, with an emphasis on understanding the signaling and regulatory mechanisms controlling drug-induced cell death. He is originally from Seattle, Washington, and received his academic training at the University of Washington (BS, Statistics/Cell Biology), the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (PhD, Pharmacology), and MIT (postdoctoral fellowship with Mike Yaffe).
- Speaker: Mike Lee PhD, Associate Professor Department of Systems Biology, UMass Chan Medical School
- Monday 27 April 2026, 12:30-13:30
- Venue: CRUK CI Lecture Theatre.
- Series: Seminars on Quantitative Biology @ CRUK Cambridge Institute ; organiser: .
Thu 21 May 09:30: The role of radiation in cancer care: a spotlight on cancers of the oesophagus, head and neck
Thu 14 May 09:30: Overview of treatment for non-small cell lung cancer
Thu 30 Apr 09:30: From lab to clinic: an introduction to translational research
Thu 04 Jun 09:30: Using Light for Cancer Detection
Abstract not available
- Speaker: Dr Danielle Harper; Dept of Oncology and Early Cancer Institute
- Thursday 04 June 2026, 09:30-10:30
- Venue: Theo Chalmers Lecture Theatre (LT2) School of Clinical Medicine.
- Series: Cancer Research UK Cambridge Centre Lectures in Cancer Biology and Medicine; organiser: Justin Holt.
Thu 04 Jun 09:30: Using Light for Cancer Detection
Abstract not available
- Speaker: Dr Danielle Harper; Dept of Oncology and Early Cancer Institute
- Thursday 04 June 2026, 09:30-10:30
- Venue: Theo Chalmers Lecture Theatre (LT2) School of Clinical Medicine.
- Series: Cancer Research UK Cambridge Centre Lectures in Cancer Biology and Medicine; organiser: Justin Holt.
Thu 21 May 09:30: The role of radiation in cancer care: a spotlight on cancers of the oesophagus, head and neck
Abstract not available
- Speaker: Dr Gill Barnett; Dept of Oncology; Dr Christopher Jones, Dept of Oncology and Cambridge University Hospitals
- Thursday 21 May 2026, 09:30-10:30
- Venue: Theo Chalmers Lecture Theatre (LT2) School of Clinical Medicine.
- Series: Cancer Research UK Cambridge Centre Lectures in Cancer Biology and Medicine; organiser: Justin Holt.
Thu 21 May 09:30: The role of radiation in cancer care: a spotlight on cancers of the oesophagus, head and neck
Abstract not available
- Speaker: Dr Gill Barnett; Dept of Oncology; Dr Christopher Jones, Dept of Oncology and Cambridge University Hospitals
- Thursday 21 May 2026, 09:30-10:30
- Venue: Theo Chalmers Lecture Theatre (LT2) School of Clinical Medicine.
- Series: Cancer Research UK Cambridge Centre Lectures in Cancer Biology and Medicine; organiser: Justin Holt.
Thu 14 May 09:30: Overview of treatment for non-small cell lung cancer
Abstract not available
- Speaker: Dr Huiqi Yang and Dr Nicola Thompson, Cambridge University Hopitals Trust
- Thursday 14 May 2026, 09:30-10:30
- Venue: William Harvey Lecture Theatre, School of Clinical Medicine.
- Series: Cancer Research UK Cambridge Centre Lectures in Cancer Biology and Medicine; organiser: Justin Holt.
Thu 14 May 09:30: Overview of treatment for non-small cell lung cancer
Abstract not available
- Speaker: Dr Huiqi Yang and Dr Nicola Thompson, Cambridge University Hopitals Trust
- Thursday 14 May 2026, 09:30-10:30
- Venue: William Harvey Lecture Theatre, School of Clinical Medicine.
- Series: Cancer Research UK Cambridge Centre Lectures in Cancer Biology and Medicine; organiser: Justin Holt.
Thu 23 Apr 09:30: Decoding genomic chaos - a pancancer compendium of chromosomal instability
Abstract not available
- Speaker: Professor Florian Markowetz, Cancer Research UK Cambridge Institute
- Thursday 23 April 2026, 09:30-10:30
- Venue: Theo Chalmers Lecture Theatre (LT2) School of Clinical Medicine.
- Series: Cancer Research UK Cambridge Centre Lectures in Cancer Biology and Medicine; organiser: Justin Holt.
Thu 23 Apr 09:30: Decoding genomic chaos - a pancancer compendium of chromosomal instability
Abstract not available
- Speaker: Professor Florian Markowetz, Cancer Research UK Cambridge Institute
- Thursday 23 April 2026, 09:30-10:30
- Venue: Theo Chalmers Lecture Theatre (LT2) School of Clinical Medicine.
- Series: Cancer Research UK Cambridge Centre Lectures in Cancer Biology and Medicine; organiser: Justin Holt.