Novel pathways shaping facultative heterochromatin in cancer cells
Official title: Novel pathways in heterochromatin regulation
Funded at Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation · NIH-11392204 · Data updated 2026-11-12
This grant studies how certain chromatin regulators control cancer cell DNA packaging to reveal new angles for improving human health.
Quick facts
| Grant type | NIH-funded research |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Oklahoma City, United States) |
| Project start | August 15, 2025 |
| Project end | July 31, 2030 |
| Funding year | 2026 |
| Award (this year) | $426,250 |
| NIH project number | 5R35GM154839-02 |
| Project ID | NIH-11392204 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Ideal candidates are adults with cancers where chromatin regulation pathways are relevant, or those contributing healthy donor samples for cell-based studies.
✕Less likely to help
Patients with cancers not linked to chromatin state changes or those not participating in any biospecimen collection may see no direct benefit.
What this research studies
The project investigates how different chromatin regulator complexes influence facultative heterochromatin and how their unique subunits contribute to its regulation in human cells. It uses loss-of-function and gain-of-function approaches to compare the roles of cBAF, pBAF, and gBAF complexes in stem cells, and to understand how homologous recombination repair proteins act as heterochromatin regulators when DNA is not damaged. Biochemical and cellular experiments will map how these factors alter chromatin states and gene expression. The goal is to build models of regulation that could inform strategies to impact cancer cell behavior and genome stability.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: Understanding these chromatin regulators could lead to new approaches for targeting cancer cell plasticity and genome maintenance.
How similar studies have gone: Previous work has shown that chromatin regulation can influence gene expression and genome stability, supporting the potential of this approach but the exact models here are novel.
Where this research is happening
-
Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation
Oklahoma City, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Kirkland, Jacob Gordon — Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation
- Study coordinator: Kirkland, Jacob Gordon
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page.