Pathophysiological Aspects of Ribosome Biogenesis
Top panels: alterations of size, shape and occurrence of nucleoli in disease; Bottom: quantitative detection of nucleoli.” (Lafontaine Lab).
We are developing novel nucleolar cancer biomarkers for improved classification of malignancies and patient stratification. We are implementing animal models to study the effects of ribosome assembly dysfunction in development.
The nucleolus is a potent biomarker of cell health as alterations in its morphology and protein content are indicative of changes in cell growth and proliferation, cell-cycle regulation, and senescence, as well as stress responses and cancer. Although the nucleolus is a potent cancer biomarker, it not widely used by pathologists because of lack of robust clinical assays.
