Andrew J. Holland, Ph.D.

Research

My lab investigates how defects in the machinery that segregates chromosomes during cell division facilitate the development of cancer. Dividing cells possess a pair of centrosomes—structures that serve as the poles toward which chromosomes are drawn as they are distributed evenly between the two daughter cells. But tumor cells often have extra centrosomes, an anomaly that could lead to the sort of chromosomal mishandling that is exceptionally common in cancer. We have produced mice in which we can trigger the generation of surplus centrosomes using techniques in cell biology and molecular genetics. Working with these mice, our goal is to determine whether the presence of superfluous centrosomes renders the animals prone to the development of cancers, and whether these chromosomally unstable cancers are exceptionally aggressive or invasive. This work could lead to the development of novel therapies for the treatment of cancers.