Camacho Lab

Assistant Professor

The overarching theme of my research interests and goals has focused on understanding key genetic events that lead to cancer in an effort to identify novel targets that will help improve existing therapies. Currently, I am interested in characterizing the molecular basis of breast cancer phenotypes with an emphasis on PARP biology. ADP-ribosylation mediated by PARP-1 is a frequent post-translation modification in eukaryotes shown to play an extensive role in gene regulation by modulating transcription. In Estrogen Receptor (ER)-positive breast cancers, PARP-1 plays a critical role in the direct control of estrogen-dependent gene expression, in part by modulating the activity of the transcription factor FoxA1. The biological consequences of PARP-1-mediated FoxA1 ADP-ribosylation are currently being explored. The long-term goal is to expand our knowledge of the role of PARP-1-mediated ADP-ribosylation in breast cancer biology by employing an array of biochemical, molecular, genomic and proteomic approaches using cell-based and transgenic mouse models of human breast cancer.

Faculty Profile