معرفی
Dong Joo Cheon is an Associate Professor in Regenerative and Cancer Biology at the University of Texas Health Science Center. His research focuses on understanding the molecular mechanisms of tumor-stroma interactions in ovarian cancer progression, particularly the role of collagen crosslinking, matrix stiffness, and fibroblast activation in metastasis and chemoresistance.
- Education: PhD in 2009 from the University of Texas Health Science Center.
Cheon’s work centers on identifying how tumor cells interact with specific collagen subtypes (e.g., COL11A1, COL5A1) to acquire aggressive phenotypes. He employs genetic, genomic, and proteomic approaches to study collagen function and signaling in epithelial cells, aiming to develop biomarker-guided therapies to block tumor-stroma interactions.
His most notable contribution is the discovery of a 10-gene biomarker panel (including AEBP1, COL11A1, and LOX) linked to poor prognosis and metastasis in ovarian cancer, validated across 710 high-grade serous cancer samples. These genes are also implicated in tumor progression across multiple cancer types.
- Scientific Awards:
- Ann Schreiber Mentored Investigators Award
Cheon is supported by grants from the American Cancer Society, Sandy Rollman Ovarian Cancer Foundation, and National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences (UL1TR000124). He is also an inventor of the pending patent PCT/US2013/065537 related to the 10-gene biomarker panel.
