Lab of Cancer Biology_Professor Jeng-Woei Lee

Contact information
Jeng-Woei Lee, Professor
Department of Life Sciences
Tel: 886-3-8565301 ext.2620
e-mail: jwlee@mail.tcu.edu.tw
Lab Web Address: http://www.tculs.tcu.edu.tw/?page_id=563

Research expertise

Cancer Biology

Research Interest

 We are interested in understanding the developing mechanism of head and neck cancers, including oral cancer, nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) and hypopharyngeal carcinoma (HPC). In this respect, we are for the fist time to demonstrate that Epstein-Barr virus (EBV)-encoded oncoprotein latent membrane protein 1 (LMP-1) can down-regulate a pro-apoptosis protein, prostate apoptosis response-4 (Par-4) activity, conversely, induce a pivotal angiogenesis activator, hypoxia-inducible factor-1a (HIF-1a) transcription. In addition, we have used microarray analysis to analyze the genes regulated by LMP1. Several genes related to metabolism, such as TCA cycle, are selected under investigation. We are also interested in investigating crosstalk between apoptosis and autophagy in HPC prognosis. Through miRNA microarray analysis, another interest of our lab is to study significance of differentially expressed miRNAs in repeated NPC recurrence. Another effort of our lab is to study tumor microenvironment via patient-derived xenograft (PDX) system.

Selected Publication

  1. Sung WW, Chu YC, Chen PR, Liao MH, Lee JW*. Positive regulation of HIF-1A expression by EBV oncoprotein LMP1in nasopharyngeal carcinoma cells. Cancer Lett. 2016;382:21-31
  2. Wang LJ, Chen PR, Hsu LP, Hsu WL, Liu DW, Chang CH, Hsu YC, Lee JW*. Concomitant induction of apoptosis and autophagy by prostate apoptosis response-4 (Par-4) in hypopharyngeal carcinoma cells. Am J Pathol 2014;184:418-30
  3. Wang LJ, Chou YF, Chen PR, Su B, Hsu YC, Chang CH, Lee JW*. Differential miRNA expression in repeated recurrence of nasopharyngeal carcinoma. Cancer Lett 2014;344:188-94
  4. Ji WT, Chen HR, Lin CH, Lee JW*, Lee CC*. Monocyte chemotactic protein 1 (MCP-1) modulates pro-survival signaling to promote progression of head and neck squamous cell carcinoma. PLoS One. 2014;9(2):e88952
  5. Lee JW *, Hsiao WT, Chen HY, Hsu LP, Chen PR, Lin MD, Chiu SJ, Shih WL, Hsu YC. Up-regulated claudin-1 expression confers resistance to cell death of nasopharyngeal carcinoma cells. Int J Cancer 2010;126:1353-66