Curtis Thorne
Associate Professor, Cellular and Molecular Medicine
Member of the Graduate Faculty
Associate Professor, BIO5 Institute
Leon Levy Cancer Center, 4947
Curtis received his B.S. in 2000 from Baylor University where he concentrated in Biology and Chemistry. Following undergrad, he was a technician for two years at Baylor College of Medicine in the laboratory of Dr. Adrian Lee studying growth factor signaling in breast cancer. He received his Ph.D. in 2010 from Vanderbilt University in Cell and Developmental Biology under Dr. Ethan Lee. In graduate school, he discovered a novel therapeutic for the treatment of colon cancer. He conducted postdoctoral studies as an American Cancer Society Fellow at University of Texas Southwestern in the laboratories of Dr. Steven Altschuler and Dr. Lani Wu (now at UCSF). There he developed a high throughput method for culturing intestinal stem cells combined with automated cell imaging. Using these approaches, he discovered novel drug combinations for the treatment colon cancer. While at UT Southwestern, Curtis received a NIH Pathway to Independence Award with additional training in kinase biochemistry in the lab of Dr. Melanie Cobb.
In 2017, Curtis took a position as Assistant Professor in the Department of Cellular and Molecular Medicine at the University of Arizona. He is also a member of the BIO5 Institute and the University of Arizona Cancer Center.
Research Interest
My laboratory investigates the signaling mechanisms controlling cell fate and tissue homeostasis of the intestine. We utilizes the fascinating characteristics of ex vivo organoid cultures of intestinal stem cells to address fundamental questions in cell and cancer biology: How do cells identify, measure, and respond to each other and to their environment? What are the signals that control the renewal and regeneration of intestinal tissues? How do these signals malfunction in colorectal cancer? Our long-term goal is to uncover an underlying circuit theory behind these behaviors – a set of predictive principles that tell us how complex functionality arises from simpler biological components. We have a particular interest in kinase networks that regulate healthy tissue homeostasis and are dis-regulated in cancer. Through our quantitative high-throughput imaging and drug discovery efforts, we are finding new ways to understand and repair these networks.
Offering Research Opportunities
Yes
Prerequisite Courses
None
Majors Considered
MCB, Physiology, Chemistry, Engineering
Description of Opportunity
No description given
