Nasopharynx – Chang Gung University (Coordinating Center)

Brief Description of Project:

"Improving early detection of nasopharyngeal carcinoma with a blood test" is a research project to identify biomarkers (proteins) that reveal the presence of nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) in a blood test and then to determine which are effective markers of early disease and which of therapeutic response. The Consortium will tap the enormous combined expertise of researchers in the fields of proteomics, informatics, and clinical NPC care and direct it towards the critical goal of detecting NPC early. To participate in this international effort for early detection markers, multiple hospital-based clinical groups from six campuses of Chang Gung Memorial Hospital, one hospital-based and one University-based proteomics core facilities, and an integrated EBV/NPC research group (from Chang Gung University and Chang Gung Hospital) have been brought together.

NPC is a rare malignancy in Western Europeans but prominent in Chinese living in southeastern Asia. Epstein-Barr virus (EBV), a human herpesvirus, is closely associated with this cancer. In addition, NPC represents ~40% of head and neck cancers and is notorious for its highly metastatic nature. In Chang Gung Memorial Hospital at Lin-Kou (one of the six campuses), more than 300 new cases of NPC are diagnosed and around 250 patients are treated by radiotherapy each year. The more advanced diseases are treated with radiotherapy and chemotherapy. The overall survival rate of NPC patients is ~92% at one year and ~50% at five years. Approximately 27% of patients with distant metastases survive after current treatment remedies. Thus, more sensitive and comprehensive approaches for early detection are merited.

Team Members and Expertise:

Kai-ping CHANG, M.D. [changkp@adm.cgmh.org.tw]
Dr. Chang is an attending physician in the Otolaryngology Department. Dr. Chang is also a PhD student, and his research interest is in identifying genes that are differentially expressed in NPC tumor cells as compared to normal adjacent cells. He has applied both cDNA microarray and proteomics techniques for these analyses. In addition, he is in charge of the clinical sample collection and handling.

Yu-sun CHANG, Ph.D. [ysc@mail.cgu.edu.tw]
Dr. Chang is a professor in the Graduate Institute of Basic Medical Sciences at Chang Gung University and the Director of the Chang Gung University Molecular Medicine Research Center. She is a virologist who has worked on Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) for many years. Her research interest focuses on the role of EBV in NPC pathogenesis. Dr. Chang's group has identified a variant strain of EBV prominent in the Taiwanese population. This work prompted a collaboration with clinicians who use EBV as a molecular marker for detection, follow-up, recurrence, and metastasis of NPC. Currently, she is investigating the induction of cellular DNA methyltransferases by an EBV-encoded oncogene product, LMP1, and subsequent gene regulation through DNA methylation in NPC. In collaboration with other colleagues, she has examined differentially expressed proteins in the presence of LMP1 and in NPC biopsies using a proteomics approach. Dr. Chang is leading the Chang Gung EBV/NPC integrated research program, and has been acting as the Main Program PI for the "Striving for Excellency Project-Rational Drug Development" program of National Tsin Hua University and Chang Gung University supported by the Department of Education in Taiwan.

Kuang-Den CHEN, Ph.D. [nis.chen@gmail.com]
Dr. Chen is an assistant professor in the Department of Life Sciences and a core member of the Chang Gung Bioinformatics Core Lab. He is trained as a bioinformatician with expertise in clinical genomics and population genetics. He obtained his PhD degree from the Life Sciences Department at National Tsin Hua University, and finished his post-doctoral studies in Dr. Shu Chien's lab at UC San Diego. He led the bioinformatics team at Vita Genomics Inc. and has had experience in biomarker discovery for single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs), gene expression, and device development for molecular genetic testing. He has patents filed for drug efficacy prediction in chronic hepatitis C patients and predisposition of childhood asthma.

Lang-ming CHI, Ph.D. [lmchi@mail.cgu.edu.tw]
Dr. Chi is an assistant research professor of the Medical Research Division of Chang Gung Memorial Hospital. While a graduate student in Dr. W.-G. Wu's laboratory in National Tsin Hua University in Taiwan, she studied the dynamics of model and biological membranes and gained experience in spectrometric techniques including nuclear magnetic resonance, chromatography, and micromanipulation microscopy. As a postdoctoral fellow with Dr. Yu-Sun Chang in Chang Gung University, she focused on studying the carcinogenic role of latent membrane protein 1 in Epstein-Barr virus-associated nasopharyngeal carcinoma and found a novel phosphorylation site on this viral oncoprotein via mass spectrometry. In February 2005, she joined the Proteomics Core Laboratory in Chang Gung University, where she is continuing to pursue her interest in latent membrane protein 1-induced tumor malignancy, primarily targeting post-translational modification as a cellular marker for evaluating tumor progression.

Kuen-yi CHIEN, Ph.D. [kychien@mail.cgu.edu.tw]
Dr. Chien is an assistant professor in the Department of Biochemistry and the associate Director of the Proteomics Core Lab in Chang Gung University and Chang Gung Molecular Medicine Research Center. He is responsible for the running of the core laboratory including the service affairs and methodology developments. Dr. Chien's PhD training is in protein chemistry and physical biochemistry. In March 2002, he joined the Chang Gung Memorial Hospital research group and became a faculty of the Chang Gung University in September 2003. His interests and expertise focus on the development of proteome analysis platforms, especially on the applications of the combinatory technologies of chromatography and mass spectrometry. He is currently working on the application of mass spectrometry-based quantitation platforms for the proteomic analyses of body fluids.

Sheng-po HAO, M.D. [shengpo@adm.cgmh.org.tw]
Dr. Hao is an associate professor and the Head of the Otolaryngology department at Chang Gung Memorial Hospital. Dr. Hao's clinical specialty is on NPC, and his research is focusing on early detection of NPC. Dr. Hao and Dr. Tsang, one of the team members, invented a technique called "nasopharyngeal swab" for quick and fast detection of EBV-positive NPC tumor cells from the nasopharynx. Dr. Hao is currently carrying out a population-screening project for early detection of NPC.

Chuen HSUEH, M.D. [ch9211@cgmh.org.tw]
Dr. Hsueh is the Head of the Pathology Department at Chang Gung Memorial Hospital and the Pathology Core at Chang Gung Molecular Medicine Research Center. She is also an associate professor at Chang Gung University. Dr. Hsueh is a member of the Chang Gung EBV/NPC research team. She has extensive experience in NPC pathology.

Chia C. PAO, Ph.D. (Biomarker Team PI) [ccpao@mail.cgu.edu.tw]
Dr. Pao is the President and professor in the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, of Chang Gung University. He is a well-known virologist working on human papillomaviruses and cervical carcinoma. He has established molecular diagnosis techniques for detection of HPV in clinical samples. He oversees the Biomarker Discovery program carried out at Chang Gung Molecular Medicine Research Center.

Petrus TANG, Ph.D. [petang@mail.cgu.edu.tw]
Dr. Tang is an assistant professor in the Graduate Institute of Biomedical Sciences. He is the associate director of the Chang Gung Bioinformatics Center. Dr. Tang obtained his Ph.D. degree from the Department of Pathology at University of Cambridge. He has been engaged in teaching and research in Bioinformatics for the past seven years. His expertise is microbial genome sequencing and comparative transcriptomics. Dr. Tang is currently working on the Trichomonas vaginalis genome sequencing and expressed sequenced tag projects with TIGR.

Nang-ming TSANG, M.D., D.Sc. [vstsang@adm.cgmh.org.tw]
Dr. Tsang is an attending physician in the Department of Radiation Oncology at Chang Gung Memorial Hospital. Dr. Tsang has obtained his DSc from the School of Public Health at Harvard University. His thesis work focused on investigation of functions of HPV, Rb, p53, and their respective mutant forms. Together with Dr. Sheng-po Hao, he developed a PCR-based detection method for EBV in NPC tumor cells by nasopharyngeal swab techniques.

Chia Jung YU, Ph.D. [yucj1124@gmail.com]
Dr. Yu is an assistant professor in the Department of Biochemistry, and a core member in the Chang Gung Proteomics Core Lab. She is trained as a medical technologist with expertise in clinical biochemistry. She obtained her PhD degree in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology from National Taiwan University. Dr. Yu has experience in various techniques used in protein chemistry and proteomics study.

Jau-song YU, Ph.D. [yusong@mail.cgu.edu.tw]
Dr. Yu is a professor in the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, and Director of the Proteomics Core Lab in Chang Gung University Molecular Medicine Research Center." He is trained as a chemist and biochemist with a strong background in protein kinases. Dr. Yu has developed several research platforms with colleagues in the Proteomics Center for the Cancer Biomarker Discovery program. Dr. Yu serves as an advisor for colleagues in Chang Gung University and Hospital and at other institutes in Taiwan on proteomics technology application in their research.