Kathy H.Y. Shair, PhD

Cancer is a complex disease with multiple etiologies including host, environmental and microbial factors.  It is estimated that more than 15% of all human cancers are associated with a viral infection.  My laboratory studies the oncogenic mechanisms of the -herpesvirus Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) in epithelial and lymphoid malignances.  EBV is the first discovered human tumor virus.  Human infection is ubiquitous with nearly 200,000 EBV-associated new cancer cases per year worldwide.  These include immuno-competent (nasopharyngeal carcinoma, gastric carcinoma, Hodgkin lymphoma, Burkitt lymphoma) and immuno-suppressed (post-transplant and AIDs-associated lymphomas) cancers.  In the absence of a prophylactic vaccine, more than 95% of adults by 35-40 years of age are persistently infected.  The Shair lab studies how virus-host interactions alter the infection outcome and biology of the infected cell, and how viral modulation of DNA repair mechanisms could be a risk-factor.  Using cell-based and polarized 3D epithelial culture models, we use molecular virology to elucidate the oncogenic mechanisms of nasopharyngeal carcinoma.  We also utilize mouse models and clinical specimens to determine biological significance, as well as for the discovery of cancer biomarkers.  By studying 1) EBV oncogenic mechanisms, 2) determinants of EBV pathogenesis and 3) biomarkers, we can begin to understand the molecular determinants of virus-associated cancers and ultimately guide us in developing effective therapeutic strategies.

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