On April 1, Heather Kendall, a graduate student in the laboratory of VCC member Barry Finette, MD, PhD, successfully defended her doctoral dissertation on a project entitled "The Genetic Effects of Chemotherapy in Children with Acute Lymphocytic Leukemia (ALL)." Kendall received the degree from the UVM Department of Microbiology and Molecular Genetics, where she had earned a BS in 1997. Kendall had been a participant in VCC's Cancer Biology Training Program for several years while working in Finette's laboratory.
ALL, a cancer of the blood, is the most common childhood malignancy. The survival rate of children with ALL has risen significantly from 4% in the 1960's, to 80-90% today. However, the long-term effects of these treatments for ALL in children are unknown. Research in the Finette laboratory has shown that children treated with chemotherapy for ALL have significantly elevated HPRT mutant frequencies (Mfs) (30-1300 fold higher) compared to healthy children, which may elevate their risk for developing new cancers and other diseases later in life. While chemotherapy is essential for surviving the disease, research into its genetic effects may lead to improved treatments. Kendall's doctoral research was focused on understanding the genetic effects of the chemotherapy in such children. Specifically, she investigated whether patients' non-tumor T cells had microsatellite instability (MSI), and determined the types of mutations at the reporter gene HPRT. This gene is working in every cell of the human body, so mutations found are reflective of changes in DNA throughout the body. Kendall's research showed that MSI was not a significant contributor to the elevated HPRT Mfs and that children whom received chemotherapy had a unique mutational spectra compared to controls.
Though it is not customary for individuals to pursue postdoctoral degrees at the same institution where they received their PhDs, for Kendall, staying in Vermont and continuing to study childhood cancers was a top priority. She recently applied for and received a postdoctoral training grant from the UVM Department of Pathology and has also received funding from the National Cancer Center. She will remain in Finette's lab, now focused on studying metabolic polymorphisms as markers for pediatric cancer and mutation risk. "I'm very excited about beginning a new chapter in my cancer studies," she says.
For more detailed information about Kendall's doctoral studies, click here.
For more detailed information about Kendall's postdoctoral project, click here.