High Resolution Differentiation Gene Analysis of Tumors

Methods to identify genes which are differentially expressed in specific cancers are of paramountimportance for both the diagnosis of the disease and for therapeutic intervention. Identification of genesspecifically expressed in different tumors will lead to better classification of these tumors with regardsto their biological and clinical behavior. Our objective is to combine molecular biological techniques withnovel instrumentation to dramatically change the way in which gene expression can be studied intumors. This will be accomplished by incorporating advances in molecular biology with our newinnovative fluorescent detection and electrophoresis separation systems to identify, quantify and directlyisolate differentially expressed genes from four progressive stages of brain tumors. A systematicevaluation of this information will provide diagnostics and form the basis for a system wideunderstanding of the underlying nature of tumor progression and cancer. CuraGen with its expertise inmolecular biology, instrument design and computer science is in a unique position to carry out thisresearch with collaborators at a major comprehensive cancer center and the National Nanofabricationfacility. A system for cloning differentially expressed genes from a variety of disease states will havesignificant medical importance and be of enormous commercial value to CuraGen.