New research from the University of Georgia's School of Medicine promises to accelerate the development of personalized cancer treatment. The project is led by Dr. Yana Zavros, UGA's inaugural Georgia Research Alliance Eminent Scholar in Molecular Medicine and a leading researcher in cellular and molecular translational medicine.
Zavros and her team use organoids, 3D cell cultures generated from a patient's tumor tissue, to study the tumor environment, discover how the patient's immune system responds to the tumor cells and investigate how the cancer evolves over time. Data from these organoid models has already shown remarkable value, leading to the identification of a targeted therapy for pancreatic cancer that is now being tested in a Phase 2 clinical trial.
"By using this defined system in cell culture, we can take a deeper investigation into how that tumor was initiated in the context of the surrounding immune cells and stroma," said Zavros, who also serves as a research center director and professor in the department of interdisciplinary biomedical sciences in the School of Medicine. "Organoids allow us to acquire an understanding of the tumor and this knowledge allows us to potentially diagnose the disease at an earlier stage and also prevent disease progression."
Advanced equipment brings new dimension to cancer research
An image of how cancer cells hijack the surrounding immune cells in the patient's tumor that is captured using the Orion Multiplex Immunofluorescence Imaging. (Submitted photo)
This research is possible thanks to new, advanced instrumentation that allows Zavros' team to study tumor tissue in detail - from individual genes to important biomarkers that could become the target for new therapies. The ORION platform enables the visualization of biomarkers within multiple individual cell types that is then compared directly to the patient's pathology of the tumor tissue. The team also has a new microscope system - the Nikon Crest spinning-disk confocal microscope - that captures clear, detailed images of living 3D organoid models in real time. This makes it ideal for studying how these cells grow and behave without causing damage.
UGA's School of Medicine is the only higher education institution in Georgia and one of few in the country with access to this specialized equipment.
"Dr. Zavros has been an exceptional addition to the School of Medicine, and her groundbreaking interdisciplinary research will only further advance the University of Georgia's reputation as a top research institution in the country," said Shelley Nuss, School of Medicine founding dean. "Dr. Zavros' state-of-the-art laboratory has furthered her renowned research abilities and will aid in attracting additional talented researchers to the University of Georgia."
Clinical partnerships enhance research impact
Zavros and her research team work closely with clinical partners throughout Georgia. Collaboration with these experts in surgery, pathology and oncology is vital to leverage the equipment and research for its greatest potential impacts for cancer patients.
Dr. Yana Zavros works in her laboratory. (Chamberlain Smith/UGA)
"Interdisciplinary collaboration is successfully established and implemented by a research team that brings unique skills and expertise," Zavros said. "The clinical perspective and the exchange of knowledge is critical from the beginning of initiating a research study because it helps the translational scientists ask the important clinical questions in the lab that can then potentially accelerate those discoveries to the patient."
Her team is working on a project to host detailed scans of the organoid models on the School of Medicine website so pathologists and collaborators across the state and nation can access this interactive data and use it to shape patient treatment. Zavros hopes the data and technological advancements from this research can be applied beyond pancreatic and other gastrointestinal cancers to help scientists study multiple diseases at the cell and molecular level.
Training the next generation of medical researchers
Graduate student Xi Sun and laboratory research technician Abigail Branch work in Dr. Yana Zavros' laboratory. (Chamberlain Smith/UGA)
As she continues to develop the School of Medicine's research enterprise, Zavros is also grateful for the educational and training opportunities that her lab provides to UGA students. From access to the most advanced equipment to collaboration with a multidisciplinary team of clinical faculty, the lab gives students a hands-on approach to training and research.
"Seeing students come into the lab and take the lead on their project, bringing their own perspective and growing their knowledge in the field because of genuine inquiry is inspiring to me," Zavros said. "Anything I can do to provide the opportunities and tools and an environment that promotes excellence and creativity for them to achieve their career goals is what makes me happy as a mentor and advisor."
