Jacks Lab current research remains centered on the use of gene targeting to create more powerful and accurate mouse models of human cancer and to explore the pathways regulated by cancer-associated genes. We have recently developed novel strategies for cell-specific activation of K-ras, which has led to important new models of lung cancer. We are currently using this strategy with a variety of compound-mutant mice to improve the lung cancer model and to develop new models of cancer of the colon, ovary, and breast, among others. These strains are being evaluated with cutting-edge tools in genetics, genomics and imaging, as well as with various chemotherapeutic agents. Our recent cell-based studies have led to important new insights into the limitations of functional compensation, the regulation of p53-dependent apoptosis, and the cellular effects of activation of the K-ras.
The Jacks Lab is comprised of post-docs (13), grad students (7), technicians (8), undergraduate students (11), and support staff (2). It is funded by NIH research grants and the Howard Hughes Medical Institute. The Jacks Lab is part of the MIT Center for Cancer Research. This website contains a research summary for the lab, contact information for all lab members, links to all of our PubMed abstracts, information on requesting reagents, certain lab protocols, and glimpses of our lab social activities.