Histidine Phosphorylation in Colorectal Cancer

The group of Prof. Michael N. Hall in Basel could recently show that the histidine phosphatase LHPP plays an essential role in liver cancer. In their study, which was published in the journal Nature, the researchers found that LHPP has a tumor protective role during liver cancer development. As histidine phosphorylation is a huge, but not very well described research field, I aim to investigate its role the course of cancer formation and therapy in greater detail. The ultimate goal of this research project is to identify the role of histidine phosphorylation in colorectal cancer and to identify molecular interaction partners. The results will provide essential insides which will help to understand the cellular mechanisms responsible for cancer formation. Furthermore, the results from the here proposed project might also have great impact on future cancer therapies. To investigate the impact of histidine phosphorylation on colorectal cancer, state of the art methods in the field of molecular biology and biochemical research will be applied. The tumor development will be analyzed in several, partially unpublished, genetically modified mouse models. Moreover, to prove that the results can be translated to the clinics, biopsies from human colorectal cancer patients will be analyzed in collaboration with surgeons from the university hospital in Basel.