Yuan Pan
The Cancer Neuroscience of Neurofibromatosis type 1 (NF1)
Abstract
Neurons have recently emerged as key players in driving cancer pathogenesis. While the role of neuronal activity in tumor growth is established, the importance of neuronal activity to tumor initiation was less clear. Individuals with the NF1 cancer predisposition syndrome often develop tumors in the optic pathway (optic glioma) during early childhood, raising the possibility that postnatal light-induced optic nerve neuronal activity drives tumor initiation. Dr. Pan will present how she and her colleagues leveraged a unique mouse model of Nf1 optic glioma to identify how light-induced neuronal activity drives tumorigenesis in the optic nerve.
Biography/Link
Yuan Pan, PhD is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Symptom Research at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center. Her research program lies in the intersection of neuroscience and nervous system cancer biology and focuses on the pathophysiology of cancer predisposition syndromes such as Neurofibromatosis Type 1 (NF1). Dr. Pan’s research group focuses on understanding the interaction between neurons and glia and how these interactions are dysregulated by genetic mutations. She was awarded the DoD NFRP Early Investigator Award, the ALSF Young Investigator Award, the CPRIT Recruitment of First-Time Tenure-Track Faculty Award, and the Gilbert Family Foundation Vision Restoration Initiative Award.