Director, Masonic Cancer Center, University of Minnesota
Program Co-leader, Women's Cancer Research Program
Professor, Department of Medicine
Tickle Family Chair in Breast Cancer Research

yeexx006@umn.edu
612-626-8487 — office
612-626-2838 — lab
Preferred contact method: e-mail

Dr. Yee's clinical profile
(University of Minnesota Physicians Web site)

Dr. Yee received his M.D. from the University of Chicago in 1981. He was recruited to the Cancer Center in 1999 from the University of Texas Health Sciences Center at San Antonio.

Research Interests

Growth regulation of breast cancer

Our laboratory is interested in understanding the contribution of insulin-like growth factor (IGF) action to the breast cancer malignant phenotype. We have shown that IGF-I can stimulate cell growth, enhance survival, and stimulate motility and adhesion. Activation of specific substrates, insulin receptor substrate-1 (IRS-1) and IRS-2 are associated with either cell proliferation or cell motility. A major focus of the laboratory is to elucidate the signals downstream of these two adaptor proteins that account for the observed phenotype. In breast cancer, development of therapeutics designed to target specific growth regulatory molecules has proven to be remarkably successful in the clinic. Since the IGFs regulate several important breast cancer phenotypes, the second focus of the laboratory is to develop anti-IGF strategies that have potential as cancer therapeutics. Our long-term goal is to improve breast cancer treatment by understanding and targeting the key components of the IGF system.

Selected Publications

Zhang S, Kamaraju S, Hakuno F, Kabuta T, Takahashi S-I, Sachdev D, Yee D. Motility response to insulin-like growth factor-I in MCF-7 cells is associated with IRS-2 activation and integrin expression. Breast Canc Res Treat. 2004;83:161-170.

Hoang CD, Zhang X, Scott PD, Guillaume TJ, Maddaus MA, Yee D, Kratzke RA. Selective activation of insulin receptor substrate-1 and -2 in pleural mesothelioma cells: association with distinct malignant phenotypes. Cancer Res. 2004;64:7479-7485.

Zhang X, Lin M, van Golen KL, Yoshioka K, Itoh K, Yee D. Multiple signaling pathways are activated during insulin-like growth factor-I (IGF-I) stimulated breast cancer cell migration. Breast Cancer Res Treat. 2005;93:159-168.

Sachdev D, Hartell JS, Lee AV, Zhang X, Yee D. A dominant negative type I insulin-like growth factor-1 inhibits metastasis of human cancer cells. J Biol Chem 279:5017-5024 2004.

Miller BS and Yee D. The type I IGF receptor (IGF1R) as a therapeutic target in cancer. Cancer Res. 2005;65:10123-10127.

Yee D. Targeting insulin-like growth factor pathways. Br J Cancer. 2006;94(4):465-468.

Sachdev D, Singh R, Fujita-Yamaguchi Y, Yee D. Down-regulation of insulin receptor by antibodies against the type I insulin-like growth factor receptor: implications for anti-insulin-like growth factor therapy in breast cancer. Cancer Res. 2006;66:2391-2402.

Kirstein MN, Brundage RC, Elmquist WF, Remmel RP, Marker PH, Guire DE, Yee D. Characterization of an in vitro cell culture bioreactor system to evaluate anti-neoplastic drug regimens. Breast Cancer Res Treat. 2006;96:217-225.

Farooqui M, Geng ZH, Stephenson EJ, Zaveri N, Yee D, Gupta K. Naloxone acts as an antagonist of estrogen receptor activity in MCF-7 cells. Mol Cancer Ther. 2006;5:611-620.

Ohira T, Schmitz KH, Ahmed RL, Yee D. Effects of weight training on quality of life in recent breast cancer survivors: the Weight Training for Breast Cancer Survivors (WTBS) study. Cancer 2006;106:2076-2083.

Ahmed RL, Thomas W, Yee D, Schmitz KH. Randomized controlled trial of weight training and lymphedema in breast cancer survivors. J Clin Oncol. 2006;24:2765-2772.

Whitson BA, Jacobson BA, Frizelle S, Patel MR, Yee D, Maddaus MA, Kratzke RA. Effects of insulin-like growth factor-1 receptor inhibition in mesothelioma. Thoracic Surgery Directors Association Resident Research Award. Ann Thorac Surg. 2006;82:996-1001;discussion 1001-1002.

Byron SA, Horwitz KB, Richer JK, Lange CA, Zhang X, Yee D. Insulin receptor substrates mediate distinct biological responses to insulin-like growth factor receptor activation in breast cancer cells. Br J Cancer 2006;95:1220-1228.

Zhang H, Pelzer AM, Kiang DT, Yee D. Down-regulation of type I insulin-like growth factor receptor increases sensitivity of breast cancer cells to insulin. Cancer Res. 2007;67:391-397.

Sachdev D, Yee D. Disrupting insulin-like growth factor signaling as a potential cancer therapy. Mol Cancer Ther. 2007;6:1-12.

Kleinberg DL, Ruan W, Yee D, Kovacs KT, Vidal S. Insulin-like growth factor-I (IGF-I) controls prostate fibromuscular development: IGF-I inhibition prevents both fibromuscular and glandular development in eugonadal mice. Endocrinology 2007;148:1080-1088.