Research Program: Women's Cancer
Senior Research Associate, Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathology

delar001@umn.edu
612-624-6608 — office
612-625-4600 — lab

Dr. De Larco received a Ph.D. in biochemistry from the University of Minnesota. He was a staff fellow at the National Institute of Child Health, 1971-1974, and a senior staff fellow at the National Cancer Institute, 1974-1980. In 1980 he became a section chief at the National Cancer Institute. He was the director of Otsuka Pharmaceutical's Research Institute in Gaithersburg, M.D., 1984-1986. He then moved to St. Louis, MO where he was the director of Monsanto's Cell Culture and Biochemistry program, 1986-1993. He was a research professor at the Saint Louis University Pediatric Research Institute, 1993-1996. He joined the Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathology at the University of Minnesota in 1997.

Research Interests

Research interests include the growth and progression of breast tumor cells and the mechanisms that contribute to their resistance to chemotherapy. Current studies also involve the use of transgenic mice to determine the role of endogenously produced reactive oxygen species in tumor formation, progression, and metastasis.

Selected Publications

De Larco, J. E. and Todaro, G. J.: Membrane receptors for murine leukemia viruses: Characterization using the purified viral envelope glycoprotein, gp71. Cell 8: 365-371, 1976.

Todaro, G. J., De Larco, J. E., and Cohen, S.: Transformation by murine and feline sarcoma viruses specifically blocks binding of epidermal growth factor (EGF) to cells. Nature 264:26-31, 1976.

De Larco, J. E. and Todaro, G. J.: A human fibrosarcoma cell line produces a family of multiplication stimulating activity (MSA)-related peptides. Letter. Nature 272:356-358, 1978.

De Larco, J. E. and Todaro, G. J.: Growth factors (SGFs) produced by murine sarcoma virus transformed cells. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 75:4001-4005, 1978.

De Larco, J.E., Reynolds, R., Carlberg, K., Engle, C., and Todaro, G. J.: Sarcoma growth factor from mouse sarcoma virus-transformed cells: Purification and elution from epidermal growth factor receptor-rich cells. J. Biol. Chem. 255:3685-3690, 1980.

Olander, J. V., Connolly, D. T. and De Larco, J. E.: Specific Binding of Vascular Permeability Factor to Endothelial Cells. Biochem. Biophys. Res. Commun. 175: 68-78, 1991.

De Larco, J.E., Wuertz, B.R.K., Rosner, K.A., Erickson, S.A., Gamache, D.E., and Furcht, L.T.: A potential role for interleukin-8 in the metastatic phenotype of breast carcinoma cells. Am J Path 158: 639-646, 2001.

De Larco, J.E., Wuertz, B. R. K., Manivel, J. C., Furcht, L. T.: Can chemotherapy contribute to the progression and enhanced metastatic potential of tumor cells? Cancer Res. 61: 2857-2861, 2001.

De Larco, J. E., Wuertz, B. R. K., Yee, D., Rickert, B.L., and Furcht, L. T.: Atypical methylation of the interleukin-8 gene correlates strongly with the metastatic potential of breast carcinoma cells. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A, 100: 13988-13993, 2003.

De Larco, J. E. Wuertz, B. R. K., and Furcht, L.T.: The Potential Role of Neutrophils in Promoting the Metastatic Phenotype of Tumors Releasing Interleukin-8. Clin. Cancer Res. 10: 4895-4900, 2004