SALT LAKE CITY—Jody Rosenblatt, Ph.D., a cell biologist at Huntsman Cancer Institute and an associate professor of oncological sciences at the University of Utah has been selected as a Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI) Faculty Scholar, HHMI announced today. The award provides $1 million to fund her research over the course of five years.
The award recognizes early-career basic science researchers, like Rosenblatt, who bring innovative approaches to the study of biological problems. Rosenblatt's research focuses on extrusion, a biological process that forces certain cells to leave the epithelium, the tissue layer that forms the outer and inner surfaces of the body like the skin and the lining of the gastrointestinal tract. This process is a necessary step in maintaining healthy organs, but when it goes awry may be the root cause of many types of cancer. Rosenblatt discovered extrusion several years ago and now studies how the mechanisms that regulate this process become damaged and instead cause diseases, including asthma and metastatic cancers.
"This program will provide these scientists with much needed flexible resources so they can follow their best research ideas," said HHMI Vice President and Chief Scientific Officer David Clapham in the HHMI press release.
Rosenblatt received her B.A. with honors from the University of California, Berkeley, and her Ph.D. from the University of California, San Francisco. She then completed postdoctoral fellowships at the University College London. Rosenblatt presents and publishes widely and has received numerous research fellowships and grants in the United States and the United Kingdom.
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About Huntsman Cancer Institute at the University of Utah
Huntsman Cancer Institute (HCI) is one of the world's top academic research and cancer treatment centers. HCI manages the Utah Population Database - the largest genetic database in the world, with more than 16 million records linked to genealogies, health records, and vital statistics. Using this data, HCI researchers have identified several cancer-causing genes, including the genes responsible for melanoma, colon and breast cancer. HCI is a member of the National Comprehensive Cancer Network (a 27-member alliance of the world's leading cancer centers) and is a National Cancer Institute-Designated Comprehensive Cancer Center. HCI treats patients with all forms of cancer and operates several high-risk clinics that focus on melanoma and breast, colon, and pancreas cancers. The HCI Cancer Learning Center for patient and public education contains one of the nation's largest collections of cancer-related publications. The institute is named after Jon M. Huntsman, a Utah philanthropist, industrialist, and cancer survivor.