Sikora Lab

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The overall goal of the Sikora Laboratory is to understand mechanisms of response and resistance to steroid hormones and anti-estrogen therapies in breast cancer. Projects in the laboratory revolve around two major efforts toward this goal: a) understanding the unique biology and estrogen receptor (ER) signaling of invasive lobular carcinoma (ILC, an understudied breast cancer subtype), and b) understanding the role of hormone receptor signaling in the development of anti-estrogen therapy resistance.

 

Current projects in these areas include:

• Elucidating the signaling network driven by ER and the Wnt ligand WNT4 in ILC
• Characterizing mechanisms controlling the unique ER transcriptome in ILC
• Identifying novel therapeutic strategies targeting ILC cells
• Characterizing hormone receptor signaling in breast cancer during anti-estrogen therapy
• Developing new models to study the emergence of anti-estrogen therapy resistance

Follow Dr. Sikora and the Sikora lab on twitter: @mjsikora

 

Selected Publications

For full listings, see https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Matthew_Sikora or search ‘Sikora MJ’ on Pubmed; further discussion and explanation of our work can be found at https://growkudos.com/profiles/106999

• Sikora, M.J. Family Matters: Collaboration and Conflict Among the Steroid Receptors Raises a Need for Group Therapy. Endocrinology. 2016 Dec;157(12):4553-4560. Review. PubMed PMID: 27835038; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC5133350.
• Sikora, M.J., et al. WNT4 mediates estrogen receptor signaling and endocrine resistance in invasive lobular carcinoma cells. In revision, Breast Cancer Research.
• Sikora, M.J., et al. Endocrine response phenotypes are altered by charcoal-stripped serum variability. Endocrinology. 2016 Jul 26:en20161297. [Epub ahead of print] PubMed PMID: 27459541.
• Sikora, M.J., et al. Invasive lobular carcinoma cell lines are characterized by unique estrogen-mediated gene expression patterns and altered tamoxifen response. Cancer Res. 2014;74:1463–74. PMID: 24425047. PMCID: PMC3955299.
• Sikora, M.J., et al. Invasive lobular carcinoma of the breast: patient response to systemic endocrine therapy and hormone response in model systems. Steroids. 2013 Jun;78(6):568-75. PMID: 23178159.
• Sikora, M.J., et al. Mechanisms of estrogen-independent breast cancer growth driven by low estrogen concentrations are unique versus complete estrogen deprivation. Breast Cancer Res Treat. 2012;134:1027–39. PMID: 22456984. PMCID: PMC3951731.
• Sikora, M.J., et al. The Androgen Metabolite 5α-androstane-3β,17β-diol (3βAdiol) Induces Breast Cancer Growth via Estrogen Receptor: Implications for Aromatase Therapy.  Breast Cancer Res Treat. 2009 May;115(2):289-96. PMID: 18521740. PMCID: PMC2728015.​

 

Lab Address

Univ. of Colorado Denver |Anschutz Medical Campus

Research Center 1 South, Room 5402A

Contact

Email: matthew.sikora@ucdenver.edu

Phone: 303-724-4301​​

Mail Stop: 8104