Phyllis Wachsberger, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor, Jefferson Medical College, Thomas Jefferson University Hospital

E-mail: phyllis.wachsberger@mail.tju.edu

Research Interests:

• Molecular mechanisms of tumor cell adaptation to growth in acidic environments: effect of chronic growth at low extracellular pH on heat shock protein expression, glucose transporter expression, rates of respiratory and glycolytic metabolism and sensitization to hyperthermia and/or radiation in the presence of membrane proton pump inhibitors and respriatory metablism inhibitiors

• Molecular mechanisms of DNA damage and repair: Studies on the effects of ionizing radiation on the induction and repair of DNA double strand breaks in mammalian cells; use of in vivo, in vitro and comet assays to study DNA damage

• Cellular mechanisms responsible for hyperthermia-induced cell killing: Morphological and biochemical studies of the effects of elevated temperatures (hyperthermia) and heat modifiers on the cytoskeleton and nuclear matrix of mammalian cells

Current Interests:
Dr. Wachsberger is currently focusing her research interests on improving tumor response to ionizing radiation with molecular targeted therapy such as antivascular and antiangiogenic agents and inhibitors of hormonal and epidermal growth factor receptors.. She is exploring which agents or combination of agents will work best to overcome tumor resistance to radiation. This work uses human tumor xenografts of glioblastoma, prostate and lung in nude mice as preclinical models to study the effects of drugs and radiation on tumor growth delay and tumor oxygenation status with the goal of optimizing combined treatments.

Dr. Wachsberger received her undergraduate degree from the City College of the City University of NYC and her Ph.D. from The Medical College of PA( Hahnemann University). She was a postdoctoral fellow in the Dept. of Anatomy at the University of Pennsylvania and a faculty member at Bryn Mawr College before coming to Thomas Jefferson University in 1986.

Selected Publications:

Wachsberger, PR, Burd, R., Wahl,M.L. and Leeper, D.B. Betulinic acid sensitization of low pH adapted human melanoma cells to hyperthermia. Int. J. Hyperthermia, in press, 2001.

Burd, R.B., Wachsberger, PR., Biaglow, J.E., Wahl, M.L., Lee, I. and Leeper, D.B. Absence of crabtree effect in human melanoma cells adapted to growth at low pH: reversal by respiratory inhibitors. Cancer Research, 61:5630-5635,, 2001.

Wachsberger, P.R. Variability in glucose transporter 1 levels and hexokinase activity in human melanoma. Melanoma Research, in press, 2001.

Wachsberger, P.R., and Iliakis, G. Hyperthermia does notaffect rejoining of DNA double strand breaks in a cell-free assay. Int. J. Radiat. Biol.,76: 313-326, 2000.

Wachsberger, P.R., Li,W.H., Guo,D., Chen, D., Cheong, N., Ling, C.C., Li, G. and Iliakis,G. Rejoining of DNA doble strand breaks in Ku80-deficient mouse fibroblasts. Radiat.. Research, 398-407,1999.

Cheong, Nge, Perrault, R., Wang, H., Wachsberger, P., Mammen P., Jackson, I., and Iliakis, G. DNA-Pk-independent pathways for rejoining of DNA double strand breaks in human cells. Int. J. Rad. Biology, 75:67-81, 1999.
 
Wachsberger, P.R., and Iliakis, G. Hyperthermia does not inhibit in vitro repair of ionizing radiation-induced DNA double strand breaks in human cell nuclei. Int. J. Rad. Biology, Accepted for publication, 1999.

Wachsberger, P.R, Landry, J., O’Hara, M.D.,Owen, C.S., Leeper, D.B. and Coss, R.A. Mammalian cells adapted to growth at pH 6.7 have elevated levels of hsp27 and are resistant to cisplatin. Int.J. Hyperthermia, 13:251-255, 1997.

Coss, R.A., Messinger, J.A., Wahl, Wachsberger, P.R., Leeper, D.B. and Owen, C.S. Bicarbonate-dependent proton extrusion in CHO cells adapted to growth at pH 6.7. Int.J. Hyperthermia ,13:325-336, 1997.

Wachsberger P. Burd R, Dicker AP. Improving tumor response to radiotherapy by targeting angiogenesis signaling pathways. Hematol Onc Clin North Am, 18:1039-1057, 2004.

Wachsberger PR, Burd R, Marero N, Daskalakis C, Ryan A, McCue P, Dicker AP. Effect of the tumor vascular damaging agent, ZD6126 on the radioresponse of U87 glioblastoma. Clin.Cancer Res. 11:835-42, 2005.

Woodward WA, Wachsberger P, Burd R, Dicker AP. Effects of androgen suppression and radiation on prostate cancer suggest a role for angiogenesis blockade. Prostate Cancer and Prostatic Disease, 8:127-32, 2005.

Wachsberger PR, Burd R, Cardi C Thakur M, Daskalakis C, Holash J, Yancopoulos GD, Dicker AP. VEGF trap in combination with radiotherapy improves tumor control in U87 Glioblastoma. Int.J.Radiat Oncol Biol Phys 67:1526-37, 2007.

Cantor JP, Iliopoulos D, Rao AS, Druck T, Semba S, Han SY, McCorkell KA, Lakshman TV, Collins JE, Wachsberger P, Friedberg JS, Huebner K. Epigenetic modulation of endogenous tumor suppressor expression in lung cancer xenografts suppresses tumorigenicity. Int J Cancer, 120:24-31, 2007.

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