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Legendary Surgeon Maurice Galante Dies
Maurice Galante, M.D., a legendary master surgeon at UCSF and renaissance man, died on February 5, 2013. His career is memorialized by the Maurice Galante Lecture Program and Maurice Galante Distinguished Professorship.
Hassan Lemjabbar-Alaoui, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor
Department of Surgery
Contact Information
University of California, San Francisco
San Francisco, CA 94143-1724
415-476-9303 Phone
Hassan.Lemjabbar-Alaoui@ucsf.edu
BiographyEducation
- University of Paris VII, B.S., Biology, 1988-1989
- University of Paris VII, M.S., Molecular Biology and Immunology, 1989-1991
- University of Paris VI, M.S., Biochemistry, 1991-1992
- University of Paris VI, Post-Master University Diploma (DU), Clinical Pharmacokinetics and Therapeutics, 1992-1993
- University of Paris XIII, Post-Master DE.A of Science, Medical and Biological Engineering, 1993-1994
- University of Paris XII, Ph.D., Molecular and Cell Biology, 1994-1997
Postdoctoral Training
- 1997-1998, Scientist, Naturalia Biologia. Paris, France
- 1998-2001, Postdoctoral Researcher, Department of Anatomy, UCSF
Program Affiliations
- Member, UCSF Helen Diller Family Comprehensive Cancer Center
- Thoracic Oncology Laboratory
- Thoracic Oncology Program
- UCSF Department of Surgery
Research Interests
- Embryonic signaling pathways such as Wnt signaling
- Role of the epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR)
- Sulf-1 and Sulf-2
Biography
Hassan Lemjabbar-Alaoui, Ph.D. is a biomedical scientist and Principal Investigator in the Thoracic Oncology Laboratory. Dr. Alaoui received his Ph.D. from the University of Paris XII. Since receiving his Ph.D. from the University of Paris XII, he has been studying the epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR), the reactivation of embryonic signaling pathways, and the roles these play in lung carcinogenesis. Dr. Alaoui began these studies in 1997 as a postdoctoral fellow/Assistant Research Anatomist in Dr. Carol Basbaum's lab at UCSF, continued them as an Associate Research Anatomist in Steven Rosen's lab, and then as an Assistant Professor of Anatomy at UCSF.
Research Summary
Dr. Alaoui's research is focused the role of the epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) in lung carcinogenesis as well as reactivation of embryonic signaling pathways such as Wnt signaling.The Alaoui Lab is a core component of the UCSF Thoracic Oncology Lab, Dr. Alaoui is currently investigating two extracellular regulators of Wnt signaling, Sulf-1 and Sulf-2, as new therapeutic targets and their role in promoting cell proliferation, survival, and angiogenesis, and in resistance to chemotherapy. Characterized a decade ago in the lab of Dr. Steven Rosen, these enzymes act on extracellular heparan sulfate. Sulfs remove specific internal sulfate residues from heparan sulfate proteoglycans (HSPGs) on both the cell surface and within the extracellular matrix.
Selected Publications
- Lemjabbar-Alaoui H, Sidhu SS, Mengistab A, Gallup M, Basbaum C. TACE/ADAM-17 Phosphorylation by PKC-Epsilon Mediates Premalignant Changes in Tobacco Smoke-Exposed Lung Cells. PLoS One. 2011; 6(3):e17489.
- Rosen SD, Lemjabbar-Alaoui H. Sulf-2: an extracellular modulator of cell signaling and a cancer target candidate. Expert Opin Ther Targets. 2010 Sep; 14(9):935-49.
- Sidhu SS, Nawroth R, Retz M, Lemjabbar-Alaoui H, Dasari V, Basbaum C. EMMPRIN regulates the canonical Wnt/beta-catenin signaling pathway, a potential role in accelerating lung tumorigenesis. Oncogene. 2010 Jul 22; 29(29):4145-56.
- Uchimura K, Lemjabbar-Alaoui H, van Kuppevelt TH, Rosen SD. Use of a phage display antibody to measure the enzymatic activity of the Sulfs. Methods Enzymol. 2010; 480:51-64.
- Lemjabbar-Alaoui H, van Zante A, Singer MS, Xue Q, Wang YQ, Tsay D, He B, Jablons DM, Rosen SD. Sulf-2, a heparan sulfate endosulfatase, promotes human lung carcinogenesis. Oncogene. 2010 Feb 4; 29(5):635-46.
In the News
NIH Awards $2.2m Collaborative Grant to Two UCSF Scientists
UCSF Thoracic Oncology Program - Aug 27, 2012The NIH has awarded two UCF scientists, Hassan Lemjabbar-Alaoui, Ph.D and Joanna J. Phillips, M.D., Ph.D., a five-year $2.2m grant to study the clinical utility of extracellular heparan sulfate endosulfatases, or SULFs, as biomarkers for early detection of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) and malignant astrocytoma. Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer death in the U.S. and world-wide. Astrocytomas are primary brain neoplasms (tumors). Glioblastoma multiforme (GBM), the most common and malignant primary brain tumor, was responsible for the death of the late Senator Edward M. Kennedy. The U01 mechanism that funded this grant, also known as a collaborative R01, is reserved for highly innovative cross-disciplinary projects that hold great promise for scientific advancements. Here Dr. Alaoui, an Assistant Adjunct Professor of Surgery, and a member of the UCSF Thoracic Oncology Program and Thoracic Oncology Lab, has teamed with Dr. Phillips, an Assistant Professor of Neurological Surgery and Pathology and Co-Director of the Brain Tumor Research Center Tissue Bank, to investigate plasma levels of SULFs, which are overexpressed in each of these lethal cancers.
UCSF-Pfizer Collaboration Project to Fast-Track Treatments for Lung Cancer
Thoracic Oncology Program - Jan 09, 2012A team consisting of Hassan Lemjabbar-Alaoui, Ph.D., Assistant Adjunct Professor of Surgery and principal Investigator in the Thoracic Oncology Laboratory and Alaoui Lab, and Steven Rosen, PhD, Professor and Vice-chair of the Department of Anatomy, are developing a novel treatment for lung cancer in a unique collaboration between UCSF and Pfizer, the world's largest drug company. The Rosen-Alaoui team has identified an enzyme found at high levels in lung and other cancers and is developing antibodies to target the enzyme and disable the cancer, even in cells rendered cancerous by cigarette smoke.The partnership enables the teams to combine their unique areas of expertise to push the pace of development, Rosen said. "That's the whole idea: merge our strengths and speed the process along, compared to what either party could do alone."
