Tse Lab

Main Research Focus
Our clinical laboratory research focuses on the molecular biology and pathophysiology of human leukemias, with the goal of translating our laboratory findings into improved diagnoses, risk classification, targeted therapy, and clinical outcomes. These studies can be divided into the following categories:

Molecular Risk Stratification of Human Leukemias
Traditional cytogenetics and contemporary FISH analysis are powerful tools to identify different risk categories in human leukemias. However, around 50% of acute myeloid leukemia patients do not have any detectable cytogenetic or FISH abnormalities and they are classified into the intermediate risk group with a long-term survival between 20-42%. In order to improve the clinical risk classification of these heterogeneous AML patients, my laboratory are developing different molecular markers that predict patient’s outcome more precisely. Recently, we found that elevated levels of the AF1q gene expression in human AML is a poor prognostic factor for pediatric and adult AML, as well as myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS). We also try to understand the collaborative leukemogenesis of AF1q with other leukemia associated genes, such as FLT3 and STATs, in human leukemias. These focuses can help us to develop a risk-adaptive clinical strategy to improve diagnosis and treatment of human leukemias.

Bench-to-bedside Translational Focus of Signaling Pathways in Human Leukemias
Acute leukemias and chronic leukemias in advanced stages may confer multiple derailed signaling pathways through gene mutations, amplification, deletion, and methylation. By improving our understanding of the molecular pathophysiology in human leukemias, we are trying to develop the pre-clinical and clinical models of molecular targeting strategy focused on derailed AF1q, Gab2, FLT3, and STAT signaling pathways in the treatment of human leukemias.

Development of Novel Differentiation Induction Drugs for Treating Leukemias
Acute myeloid leukemia (AML) is one of the most common forms of leukemia in elderly patients. However, elderly AML patients frequently can not tolerate conventional chemotherapy and often develop fatal treatment-related toxicities. Therefore there is an urgent need to develop new drugs with less toxicity for this group of patients. We hypothesize that the principal of differentiation therapy will work for non-APL acute myeloid leukemia if strong differentiation-inducing compounds besides ATRA are employed. Dr. David Wald is a Clinical Pathologist at Case Medical Center who discovered multiple non-ATRA-related compounds that can differentiate non-APL leukemic cells into “relatively benign” cells. We are beginning an active collaboration to test the therapeutic potential of these compounds using freshly obtained AML cells from patients and AML cell lines. This work may lead to new therapies that are more efficacious, less toxic, and better tolerated, especially for elderly patients.

Recent Publications

Lab Personnel

William Tse, M.D. Director
Yin Xiong, Ph.D. (research scientistis)
David Wald, M.D., Ph.D. (Clinical Pathologist, co-directing the novel anti-leukemia drug development project)
Joseph M. Burke, MS
Nancy Clough, PRA
Yichu Chen, M.D. (visiting cardiologist)