Hector Cuello, Ph.D.

Research

In the Varki lab, I will investigate the role that a receptor protein called Siglec-XII plays in the progression of cancer. Siglecs belong to a family of receptors that recognize a type of sugar that decorates the surface of vertebrate cells. One striking exception is Siglec-XII, a receptor variant, produced only in humans, that has lost its ability to bind sugars. Studies from Varki’s lab have determined that this dysfunctional receptor is present in about 80% of advanced carcinomas—cancers that arise from the epithelial tissues that line the body’s organs. When I joined the lab, I generated mice in which I can induce the production of the human Siglec-XII protein in the organs of interest. Now, using state-of-the-art methods in cell and molecular genetics, histology, and pathology, I will assess how Siglec-XII alters the appearance and function of the tissues in which it is made. I will also determine whether the protein facilitates cancer progression and enhances tumor cell malignancy in these animals when subjected to cancer-inducing protocols. This work could provide a new target for treating some of the most aggressive forms of human cancers.