Research Interest

Cancer Biology

Cancer Stem Cell

Biomarker for Diagnostics & Therapeutics

Research Summary

The major interest of the Oh lab is to develop diagnostics and therapeutics for solid cancers including gastric cancer and cholangiocarcinoma. To achieve these goals, the lab is trying to find out diagnostic or therapeutic targets using cDNA library screening and next generation sequencing including exome-sequencing, miRNA sequencing, RNA-sequencing, MBD sequencing and SNP arrays. Especially, the lab is trying to identify targets from cancer stem cells. My lab is the first lab to isolate cancer stem cells from gastric cancer patients. For functional validation of these targets, gain-of-function and loss of function studies are currently being performed using in vivo and in vitro models. Moreover, to validate clinical significance of targets, relationship with clinical stages, lymph node metastasis, vessel invasion and survival are examined using real time PCR and immunohistochemistry. Recently, new biomarkers for cancer are being investigated from the analysis of big data base (TCGA, ICGC, COSMIC etc) using various bioinformatics tools.

1. Cancer Stem Cells: Cancer stem cells have been hypothesized to be critical for tumorigenicity, chemoresistance and metastasis. So, to identify diagnostic and therapeutic targets in cancer stem cells, the lab successfully isolated cancer stem cells from gastric cancer patients for the first time. To target cancer stem cells, various kinds of experiments about stemness mechanisms and interaction with microenvironments are being performed
2. Biomarker for cancer: early detection of cancer is the best strategy to increase patients’ survival. Prognostic, diagnostic and predictive biomarkers are critical for the early detection, the choice of anti-cancer drugs and the prognosis prediction. Based on the analysis of big data (TCGA, ICGC, COSMIC etc), we are trying to find out new biomarkers and validate its clinical significance.

Selected publication

1.Pak K, Kim YH, Suh S, Goh TS, Jeong DC, Kim SJ, Kim IJ, Han ME, Oh SO. “Development of a risk scoring system for patients with papillary thyroid cancer”. J Cell Mol Med. 2019 Apr;23(4):3010-3015.

2. Han ME, Kim JY, Kim GH, Park SY, Kim YH, Oh SO. “SAC3D1: a novel prognostic marker in hepatocellular carcinoma.” Sci Rep. 2018 Oct 23;8(1):15608

3. Kwon RJ, Han ME, Kim YJ, Kim YH, Kim JY, Liu L, Heo W, Oh SO, "Roles of zinc-fingers and homeoboxes 1 during the proliferation, migration, and invasion of glioblastoma cells.", TUMOR BIOLOGY /ISSN = 1010-4283, Vol.39, Issue.3, pp.1-10 (2017/03)

4. Kwon RJ, Kim YH, Jeong DC, Han ME, Kim JY, Liu L, Jung JS, Oh SO, "Expression and prognostic significance of zinc fingers and homeoboxes family members in renal cell carcinoma", PLOS ONE /ISSN = 1932-6203, Vol.12, Issue.2, pp.e0171036-e0171048 (2017/02)

5. Han ME, Kim HJ, Shin DH, Hwang SH, Kang CD, Oh SO, "Overexpression of NRG1 promotes progression of gastric cancer by regulating the self-renewal of cancer stem cells", JOURNAL OF GASTROENTEROLOGY /ISSN = 09441174, Vol.in, pp.1-10 (2014/11)

6. Jo HJ, Shim HE, Han ME, Kim HJ, Kim KS, Baek S, Choi KU, Hur GY, Oh SO. WTAP regulates migration and invasion of cholangiocarcinoma cells. J Gastroenterol 2013.

7. Han ME, Jeon TY, Hwang SH, Lee YS, Kim HJ, Shim HE, Yoon S, Baek SY, Kim BS, Kang CD, Oh SO. Cancer spheres from gastric cancer patients provide an ideal model system for cancer stem cell research. Cell Mol Life Sci. 68(21):3589-605 (2011/03/30)

8. Jeon TY, Han ME, Lee YW, Lee YS, Kim GH, Song GA, Hur GY, Kim JY, Kim HJ, Yoon S, BaekSY, Kim BS, Kim JB, Oh SO, "Overexpression of stathmin1 in the diffuse type of gastric cancer and its roles in proliferation and migration of gastric cancer cells", Brit J Cancer, Vol.102, pp.710-718. 2010/02.