Karen Knudsen, PhD

PhD, Biological Sciences, University of California, San Diego

BS, Biology, The George Washington University

Prostate cancer is the most commonly diagnosed malignancy in the Unites States and the second leading cause of cancer death in men. Early prostate cancers require androgen to survive and proliferate; this dependence is exploited in treatment for disseminated disease. Wherein androgen ablation in the first line of therapeutic intervention. Although these regimens are initially effective, tumors ultimately recur due to reactivation of androgen receptor (AR) signaling, causing treatment failure and patient morbidity.

Despite the importance of understanding androgen action in the prostate, little is understood about the mechanisms underlying androgen dependence, and the means by which the androgen requirement is bypassed in relapsed tumors. My lab is dedicated to delineating the molecular mechanisms that govern these events. We currently have four main projects in the lab:

1. Regulation of AR dependent gene expression and cellular proliferation by cell cycle crosstalk in prostate cancer
2. Impact of SWI/SNF chromatin remodeling factors on AR function and prostate tumorigenesis
3. Impact of cell cycle deregulation on therapeutic efficacy
4. Role of endocrine disrupting compounds in circumventing the androgen requirement