Alex Kentsis, MD, PhD, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center - Mathers Foundation Fellow: The laboratory of Dr. Kentsis studies DNA transposase molecules that can mediate ‘cut-and-paste’ rearrangements of human genes and can cause mutations in childhood and select adult tumors. The goal is to develop new therapies to treat cancers caused by such “jumping genes” and to develop potential strategies for their prevention.
Dr. Kentsis is being funded in partnership with The G. Harold and Leila Y. Mathers Foundation, which aims to advance knowledge in the life sciences by sponsoring scientific research that will benefit mankind. Basic scientific research, with potential translational application, is central to this goal, and fundamental to its operating principles.