David Benner Lombard
University of Miami, FL·Medicine & Clinical Research
Ewing sarcoma is an aggressive cancer of bone and soft tissue that strikes children and young adults. Patients whose cancer has spread or returned have a poor outlook.
- Fields
Medicine & Clinical Research
Biochemistry
Pharmacology
- Topics
Ewing sarcoma
pediatric cancer
sirtuins
- Grants
- 2 known grants, through Jun 2029
What they work on
- Determine how SIRT5, an enzyme that strips succinyl tags from proteins, controls histone succinylation and gene expression in Ewing sarcoma cells, using mass spectrometry with transcriptomic and epigenomic profiling.
- Test the hypothesis that Ewing sarcoma cells need SIRT5 to survive because its removal of succinyl tags from histones keeps key genes properly regulated.
- Optimize and validate small-molecule SIRT5 inhibitors using medicinal chemistry guided by co-crystal structures of SIRT5 bound to inhibitors.
- Develop PROTAC degraders, molecules that direct SIRT5 to the cell's protein-disposal machinery, as research tools and as starting points for Ewing sarcoma therapies.
- Co-lead a cancer center program that identifies epigenetic regulators, enhancer reprogramming and epigenetic drug targets underlying cancer onset, progression and treatment resistance.
More about the research
Even survivors often face long-term harm from chemotherapy and radiation, such as heart disease and second cancers. The lab's work centers on finding new, gentler drug targets for this cancer by studying how chemical tags on proteins control which genes are switched on. Lombard also co-leads a cancer center program focused on this kind of gene regulation, called cancer epigenetics.
Why it matters
New treatments for Ewing sarcoma that cause fewer lasting side effects are a major unmet need in pediatric oncology. Because normal cells and mice tolerate the loss of SIRT5, drugs that block or destroy it may be well tolerated. Such drugs could offer a new option for children and young adults with metastatic or relapsed disease. More broadly, the cancer epigenetics program seeks biomarkers and drug targets to improve cancer treatment in South Florida.
Known grants
From NIH and NSF research grants. Labs often have other funding we can't see.
Closest labs
Jason Yustein
Emory University, GA·Medicine & Clinical Research
Map single-cell protein and RNA signatures and cell-cell communication in MYC-amplified human and mouse osteosarcoma, using patient-derived xenografts and engineered mice, and disrupt candidate metastasis-linked signals genetically.
Richard Kolodner
University of California-San Diego, CA·Genetics
Identify human genes whose loss sensitizes cells to potent FEN1 inhibitors through expanded CRISPR-dropout screens in cell lines and mice, defining synthetic lethal partners of this flap-trimming endonuclease.
Jaewon Chang
Emory University, GA·Chemistry
Design and synthesize covalent warheads that react with lysine, tyrosine and serine residues on E3 ubiquitin ligases, the enzymes that tag proteins for destruction, going beyond the cysteine-reactive chemistry used so far.
The school
University of Miami: 30 labs on PI Pages, $559M a year on research, 297 research doctorates a year.
Reach out
A start for your email. Fill in the brackets.