Caroline McCauley successfully defends PhD dissertation

Student and Faculty Member standing in front of a screen with powpoint slide displayed

Caroline successfully defended her dissertation to complete her PhD in Cell Biology, Immunology and Microbiology under the mentorship of Drs. Bruce Bunnell and Rebecca Cunningham.

The research
McCauley's dissertations is titled, “Development and Characterization of Small-Molecule Kinase Inhibitors for Triple-Negative Breast Cancer."

Triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) is a challenging subtype to treat because it lacks receptors that are typically found in other breast cancers. Because of that, researchers are searching for new ways to target TNBC in patients. In her research, Caroline identified an effective, novel protein kinase inhibitor compound against TNBC.

In addition, with the help of their collaborators, the research team developed slightly modified versions of this compound to see if they could improve its efficacy. Interestingly, this worked!

They found a compound more effective than the original. They also discovered that all of their compounds are potent tubulin binding agents in addition to being kinase inhibitors, suggesting that their compounds may target TNBC cells through dual mechanisms, which may reduce resistance in these cells in the future.

What’s next?
McCauley has accepted a post-doctoral researcher position at SUNY Upstate Medical University in Syracuse, NY, where she will be working with Dr. John Brognard on kinase signaling in understudied cancers.