About Us

In 2016, several faculty research groups from CSUN Biology and Chemistry/Biochemistry formed an interdisciplinary focus group called DECAFOG (DEvelopment and CAncer FOcus Group) that meets monthly for trainee presentations and discussion. Out of these meetings arose a sense that there could be even greater synergistic value in organizing a regional meeting to highlight ongoing and ignite new interdisciplinary cancer research efforts within the California State University (CSU) system.

Thus, the CSU-ICM was established with generous support from ASCB, CSUN, CSUPERB and industry sponsors. The meeting is designed to be trainee-run with general oversight provided by faculty mentors (see below for bios). Colleagues across the CSU system and from the NIH-funded SDSU-UCSD Cancer Center Partnership have expressed great enthusiasm for this meeting. The inaugural event was held on November 6, 2018 with nearly 200 in attendance.

The organizing committee is already planning for the next CSU-ICM meeting and we are pleased to share the exciting news that Dr. Carolos Arteaga will be our keynote speaker on Friday, November 6, 2020.

We hope you will put this date on your calendar and keep an eye out for more updates over the coming months.

Questions pertaining to any aspect of this meeting should be emailed to csuicm@gmail.com.

FACULTY ORGANIZERS:

Jonathan Kelber, Ph.D.

Dr. Jonathan Kelber is an Associate Professor in the Department of Biology at Cal State Northridge. His lab seeks to characterize the molecular mechanisms and functions of genes that play critical roles in cancer and tissue regeneration. Their work integrates molecular/cellular biology, signaling biochemistry, animal models of normal development and disease, and microscopy imaging to answer questions in these fields.

Daniel Tamae, Ph.D.

Dr. Daniel Tamae is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry at Cal State Northridge. His lab is investigating glucose and hormone metabolism in cancer and interrogating the molecular mechanisms linking the metabolic syndrome with elevated cancer risk. His research utilizes analytical chemistry, biochemistry and molecular biology approaches to interrogate cancer metabolism.

Maria Elena De Bellard, Ph.D.

Dr. Maria Elena De Bellard is a Professor in the Department of Biology at Cal State Northridge. Her lab is interested in studying neural crest cell migration and developing new methods for studying this process in vitro. They carry out classic cell (e.g., normal and cancer cell migration, molecular signaling), embryology (e.g., live embryos and genetic manipulations) and the evo-devo experiments across early vertebrates including snakes, turtles, geckos, sharks, and rays.

Eduardo Guerra Amorim, Ph.D.

Dr. Eduardo Amorim is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Biology at Cal State Northridge. His research interest is to study the processes of natural selection at both the cellular and individual levels, as well as the mechanisms of DNA mutations and repair. His lab uses computational methods to analyze large scale genomic datasets from present day and ancient humans.

TRAINEE ORGANIZERS:

Ryan Boggess

Ryan is a returning member of our organizing committee and is responsible for managing the registration component of our website, providing updated information of registrant details, including their institution and region of residence. He is currently a second-year master’s student in the CSUN Biochemistry Department and conducts research with Dr. Tamae, studying metformin’s capability to scavenge methylglyoxal.

Leticia Reque

Leticia is a returning member of our organizing committee and is responsible for providing our committee with various demographics of presenting authors as well as their submitted abstracts. Additionally, she is working with our social media team to develop methods for increasing submission participation. Leticia is a second-year graduate student in the CSUN Biochemistry department and conducts research with Dr. Tamae, with a dual focus on organic cation transporter expression and investigating how metformin can scavenge carbonyls in cancer cell lines.

Elizabeth Ortiz

Elizabeth is a new member of our organizing committee. She is a first-year graduate student with Dr. Kelber, and is tackling questions pertaining to the role of stromal fibroblasts and their secreted factors in driving invasion, metastasis and therapy resistance in HER2-positive breast cancer. Elizabeth completed her B.S. in Biology at UC Santa Barbara.

Kyaw Thway

Kyaw is a new member of our organizing committee. He is a first-year graduate student with Dr. Kelber, and is tackling questions pertaining to how cell-matrix adhesion controls tumor-supportive roles of stromal fibroblasts. More specificially, he is studying the function and mechanism of action for vinculin in fibroblast adhesion complex assembly and dynamics.

Cameron Atighetchi

Cameron has been at CSUN for a little under two years as a major in Biology (BA Degree). He is part of the Amorim Lab and he is interested in learning how genetics affects the physiology side of human beings, with a focus on high altitude adaptation. Cameron plans on applying to medical school in the near future.

Nikolas Yousefi

Nikolas is a graduate student studying melanoma in the De Bellard lab. He is studying the role of certain chemokine receptors on melanoma migration and metastasis. Nikolas plans to pursue a career in medical research after graduation.

Evan Rank

Evan is a second-year graduate student in Dr. de Bellard's lab investigating the chemotactic invasion rates and underlying cellular signaling involved in metastatic melanoma. Previously, he obtained his B.S. in Cell and Molecular Biology at San Diego State University.

STAFF ORGANIZERS:

Erika Reyes

Erika works at CSUN in the Department of Research and Sponsored Programs as a Project Specialist. Her roles include processing award letters to faculty, maintaining updates in our research management system, and coordinating and planning events around student and faculty research. Through her roles, she is helping our team to carry out all necessary steps for organizing our conference.

Sherrie Hixon

Sherrie is the Director of Strategic Research Initiatives in CSUN's Research and Sponsored Programs office. With more than 20 years of experience in grants and sponsored programs, she manages a number of projects that support our faculty and increase the visibility of university research and scholarship. She is also a doctoral candidate in the Educational Leadership and Policy Studies program with research focused on the role of urban universities in building resilience capacity through community partnerships.

Damian Velasquez

Damian works at CSUN in the Department of Research and Sponsored Programs as Administrative Support Assistant. His roles include monitoring research and award correspondences, faculty proposal follow-ups, processing award letters to faculty, coordinating and planning events around student and faculty research.