Update is sent to Masonic Cancer Center members and staff every Tuesday at 10 a.m. Please submit items to Sandi Sherman, sherm019@umn.edu, by noon the previous Friday.

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In This Issue

Message from the Director

Today's Seminar

News

Education and Events

Program Meetings

Funding News and Opportunities

Employment Opportunities

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Message from the Director

Dear Colleagues:

Our Masonic Cancer Center is fortunate to have such an abundance of talented and hardworking faculty and staff members. I encourage you to learn about some of the outstanding work being done by your colleagues at the ninth annual Shared Resources Poster Session and Symposium this Thursday from 11 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. in the Masonic Cancer Center Research Building.

From 11 a.m. to noon, oral presentations will be given in Room 450. Our Founding Director Emeritus John Kersey, M.D., will moderate presentations by:

• Eric Rahrmann, Largaespada Lab, "Systematic approach for prostate cancer gene identification"
• Amy Skubitz, Ph.D., "Discovery and validation of ovarian cancer biomarkers using Tissue Procurement Facilities samples," and
• Ashish Kumar, M.D., Ph.D., "MEIS1 is a promising new target for leukemia therapy"

Join us for lunch from noon to 1:30 p.m. and view more than two dozen posters presented by students, staff, postdocs, and principal investigators who will show work that involves the use of the cancer center's shared resources. Lunch and posters will be in the atrium areas. For more information and a list of poster presentations and their locations, visit the Web site.

This poster session and symposium is another opportunity to support our colleagues and celebrate their efforts. Hope to see you there.

Douglas Yee, M.D., Director

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Today's Seminar

Tuesday, May 13, 2008, 12-1 p.m., 450 CCRB
Therapeutic resistance of breast cancer tumor-initiating cells
Jeffrey Rosen, M.D., Ph.D., Bell Professor of Molecular and Cellular Biology, Baylor College of Medicine

Host: Kaylee Schwertfeger, Ph.D.

A peek at next week's seminar:
Tuesday, May 20, 2008, 12-1 p.m., 450 CCRB
Smoking, adverse sequelae on treatment outcome, and a model for smoking cessation treatment in the oncology setting
Ellen R. Gritz, Ph.D., Professor and Chair, Department of Behavioral Science, Olla S. Stribling, Distinguished Chair for Cancer Research, University of Texas, M.D. Anderson Cancer Center

Host: Dorothy Hatsukami, Ph.D.

Visit the Cancer Center Seminar Series calendar for a complete schedule of lectures.

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News

Members in the news
Anna Leininger, M.S., coordinator of the Minnesota Colorectal Cancer Initiative and consultant to the William C. Bernstein Hereditary Cancer Registry, worked with producers at the CBS Evening News with Katie Couric and a family with Lynch Syndrome to raise awareness and tell one family's story of living with hereditary colon cancer. The two video segments can be viewed at the CBS news website: "Eye to Eye: Colon Cancer's DNA"; "Genetic Link to Colon Cancer".

Stephen Hecht, Ph.D., leader of the Carcinogenesis and Chemoprevention Program, was quoted in a Minnesota Daily article about the Crookston campus plan to ban the use and sale of all tobacco products on campus property, including outdoors, starting next year.

Karen Hanson, Ph.D., Transdisciplinary Tobacco Use Research Center, was quoted in a news report by WCCO Radio about her study that found adolescent smokers who cut back on smoking do not necessarily reduce exposure to cancer-causing chemicals.

Member receives research funding

Eric Cressman, M.D., Ph.D., received an R21 from the NIH for his study "Thermochemical ablation in image-guided interventions: Initial assessment." The two-year grant is in the amount of $356,000.

Message from the Comparative Pathology Shared Resource
The summer months tend to be less busy for the laboratory. Investigators are encouraged to submit their projects now to avoid the fall rush! Services we can provide include generation of histological sections from frozen and formalin fixed animal tissues, routine immunohistochemistry preparations and development of new immunohistochemical protocols, and interpretation of gross and histological lesions by board-certified pathologists. Please visit the Web site for details.

Reminder: Please change your email signature and voice mail message
If you have the Cancer Center listed in your email signature and/or your voice mail message, please change it to Masonic Cancer Center, University of Minnesota. Instructions on changing email signatures are available on the Web site (Outlook-PDF, Thunderbird-PDF). If you need instructions for other e-mail clients, contact AHC help, 612-251-5100, Ahc-is@umn.edu.

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Education and Events

Spring Poster Session and Symposium
Thursday, May 15, 2008, 11 a.m.-1:30 p.m., Cancer Center Research Building
The ninth annual Spring Poster Session and Symposium sponsored by the Masonic Cancer Center's Shared Resources will include oral presentations from 11 a.m. to noon followed by a poster session and lunch from noon to 1:30 p.m. For more information and a list of poster presentations and their locations, visit the Web site.

Distinguished Visiting Scholar Series on Health Disparities
Friday, May 23, 2008, 12-1 p.m., 1-450 Moos Tower (video broadcasting to room SMed 263, Duluth campus)
Overview of racial/ethnic health disparities in health status and health care
Sherman James, Ph.D., FAHA, FABMR, Susan B. King Professor, Public Policy Studies, Center for Health Policy, Duke University
Lunch will be provided for the first 50 attendees and no R.S.V.P. is required for this event. For those attending the lecture on the Twin Cities campus, parking validation for the Oak Street Ramp, Washington Avenue Ramp or the East River Road Garage will be provided.

Community events are as follows:
Thursday, May 22, 2008, 12-2 p.m., Halle Q. Brown Community Center, 270 Kent Street, St. Paul
Informal discussion on health disparities in the African American community hosted by Tyrone Terrill, Saint Paul Department of Human Rights and the African American Leadership Council. Lunch will be provided.

Friday, May 23, 7:30 a.m.-9 a.m., Pillsbury House Theater, 3501 Chicago Ave. S., Minneapolis
Health Disparities: Strategies for Solutions: A Community Breakfast Roundtable

For more information about the Program in Health Disparities Research, visit the Web site or email phdr@umn.edu.

Randy Shaver Celebrity Golf Classic
June 1-2, 2008, Rush Creek Golf Club, Maple Grove
Through its annual Randy Shaver Celebrity Golf Classic tournament, the Randy Shaver Cancer Research and Community Fund generously contributes to Masonic Cancer Center researchers each year. In 2007, Wei Chen, M.D., Ph.D., Jonathan D'Cunha, M.D., Ph.D., Arkadiusz Dudek, M.D., Ph.D., Melissa Geller, M.D., John Ohlfest, Ph.D., Daniel Vallera, Ph.D., and John Wagner, M.D., received a combined $232,000 for research in the areas of leukemia/lymphoma, lung cancer, melanoma, ovarian cancer, brain tumors, pancreatic cancer, and stem cell biology, respectively. D'Cunha is featured in a public service announcement with Randy Shaver currently running on KARE 11. For information about the Randy Shaver Celebrity Golf Classic, visit www.randyshavergolf.com.

The Minnesota Chemoprevention Consortium—MC²
Tuesday, June 3, 2008, 11:30 a.m.-3 p.m., The Hormel Institute Multimedia Center, 801 16th Ave NE, Austin, Minn.
A tentative agenda is as follows:
11:30-12: Josh Liao, Ph.D.
12:00-12:30: Johnny Lu, Ph.D.
12:30-1:15: Focused discussion on indole-3-carbinol led by Stephen Hecht, Ph.D.
1:15-2: Discussion of processing, Hormel Foods Corp.
2-2:30: Mindy Kurzer, Ph.D.
2:30-3: Tour of new Hormel Institute facilities

Lunch will be provided. Reply to carls307@umn.edu if you plan to attend.

Lymphomathon 5K Walk: "Take a Step, Find a Cure"
June 7, 2008, Lake Nokomis, Minneapolis
The 4th Annual Lymphomathon 5K Walk: "Take a Step, Find a Cure" is sponsored by the Minnesota chapter of the Lymphoma Research Foundation (LRF). To start a team or learn more about the event, visit www.lymphomathon.org or contact the Minnesota LRF office at 612-968-3757. Brochures are available from Sven Olsen, 754 Cancer Center Research Building.

Time to Fly™ Walk/Run registration open
Saturday, June 28, 2008, Harriet Island Regional Park, St. Paul
Time to Fly™ is a family-friendly walk/run event perfect for everyone from the competitive runner to the recreational participant. Set along the banks of the beautiful Mississippi River, Time to Fly race events include: 10K run, 5K run, 5K walk, and a kids' fun run. The day also features live entertainment, performance t-shirts, event bags, complimentary food and beverages, an abundance of kids' activities, and inspirational stories by families with children affected by cancer. Awards are presented to top race finishers in eight age categories, as well as the top corporate, community, and individual fundraisers through a competitive online pledge program. The 6th annual Time to Fly will be held in conjunction with the Picnic of Hope.

Plan to form a team. For additional information visit the Children's Cancer Research Fund Web site.

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Program Meetings

Cancer Epidemiology Interest Group Meeting
Friday, May 16, 2008, 11:30 a.m.-1 p.m., D199 Mayo
The Minnesota Population Center: Providing demographic data and services to support your research
Wendy L. Thomas, M.A., M.B.A., Director, Minnesota Population Center Data Access Core

Please RSVP to Logan Spector (spector@umn.edu) by 4 p.m. on Wednesday, May 14, to reserve a lunch and indicate if you require a vegetarian selection.

For a complete schedule, visit the Web site.

BMT Conference
Monday, May 19, 2008, 1:15-2:15 p.m., Note room change: 2-520 Moos Tower
Sleeping Beauty-mediated T-Cell therapy for CD19+ Lymphoid malignancies
Xianzheng Zhou, M.D., Ph.D., Assistant Professor, Department of Pediatrics/Division of Bone Marrow Transplantation

For a complete schedule, visit the Web site.

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Funding News and Opportunities

Adolescent and Young Adults (AYA) Tumor and Tissue Repositories
Lance Armstrong Foundation (LAF)
Deadline: Survey response-July 11, 2008 (pre-application); Full solicited proposals-September 5, 2008
Funding: $25,000 for 6 months
The LAF intends to provide funding to qualified biorepositories containing well-preserved tissue samples from AYA cancer patients (defined as those diagnosed with cancer at ages 15 through 39). Funding will be made available for review and indexing of tumor and matched control tissue samples in anticipation of making tissues available to researchers exploring tumor and host biology in this unique patient population. In order to be considered for funding, all potential applicants must complete an online survey and be invited to submit a full proposal. The survey includes questions regarding tumor and match control tissues available in your biorepository, as well as general information regarding current collection, storage, retrieval, quality control, and data management practices. To complete the survey, please contact Brandy Gazo, Program Officer for Research Grants at brandy.gazo@laf.org. Surveys responses will be reviewed and full proposals will be solicited by July 28th. Full proposals will be due no later than September 5th, 2008. Unsolicited full proposals will not be considered.

NIH Announcements:

Application Instructions for Administrative Supplements to Study Economic Impact of Interventions Targeting Cancer Survivors and/or their Families
National Cancer Institute
Deadline: June 9, 2008
Funding: Up to $200,000 total costs for 1 year.

The purpose of these administrative supplements is to fund the addition or inclusion in the design of the planned psychosocial and/or behavioral intervention study of information on the economic or health services impact of the intervention being delivered.

Visit the Funding News & Opportunities Web page to see listings previously published in Update.

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Employment Opportunities

Postdoctoral Position in Protein Crystallography: Hormel Institute
A postdoctoral position in protein crystallography is available at the Hormel Institute, University of Minnesota, Austin, Minn. Applications will be accepted from highly creative and motivated individuals, who will join the Molecular and Cellular Biology Laboratory to work in the area of protein expression, purification, crystallization, and structure determination. The candidate must have experience in X-ray data collection and protein structure determination (MAD, SAD, molecular replacement). The techniques used include recombinant protein expression and purification from bacterial sources, crystallization, and protein structure determination. Experience in protein expression and purification is desirable but not necessary. The successful applicant will participate in ongoing projects for structural and biochemical analyses of protein kinases and cancer related proteins.

To apply please send a cover letter, complete CV with detailed records of academic performance, and two references to zgdong@hi.umn.edu and margarita@hi.umn.edu. Applicants must also apply through the online University of Minnesota Employment System, requisition number 143805.

Research Coordinator (requisition number 154937)
This position is in the Division of Epidemiology/Clinical Research, Department of Pediatrics, University of Minnesota Medical School. The candidate will be responsible for overseeing a study of pediatric bone cancer and participate in the conduct of an ongoing study of pediatric liver cancer. Ongoing responsibilities will include corresponding with institutions enrolling patients, recruiting and giving informed consent to participants, monitoring DNA and questionnaire data collection by the study contract agency, tracking DNA samples from receipt to processing to genotyping, obtaining medical records, literature searches, IRB correspondence, and keeping the database up-to-date regarding all aspect of subject recruitment and data collection. Similar duties apply to the liver cancer study. Applicants must apply the online University of Minnesota Employment System, requisition number 154937.

For more information about these positions and additional opportunities visit the Cancer Center's Employment Opportunities Web page.

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