YB-1 (Y-box binding protein 1) is a transcription factor that regulates genes involved in cell proliferation. YB-1 is essential for embryonic development, and YB-1 overexpression causes cancer in a mammary-specific transgenic model. Several lines of evidence suggest that YB-1 contributes to human breast cancer and other cancer types, and high levels of YB-1 correlate with poor prognosis. Using a non-biased functional assay, we found that YB-1 conferred growth factor independence to human mammary epithelial cells, one of the hallmarks of cancer cells. This effect of YB-1 was due in part to transcriptional induction of the epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR). My laboratory is currently investigating the mechanism by which YB-1 promotes cell proliferation and cancer formation.

A second interest of my laboratory, in collaboration with the Chen and Edwards labs, is the effect of dietary lipids on breast and prostate cancer risk. In particular, we are investigating how long-chain omega-3 fatty acids mediate signaling events that result in reduced cell proliferation and increased cell death.