Home Department: undeclared
Mentor: Kathleen Sakamoto, Pediatrics (Hematology & Oncology)

“Repurposing Clinically Advanced Small Molecules for Diamond Blackfan Anemia Therapy”

Diamond Blackfan Anemia (DBA) is a disease of childhood that results in the lack of red blood cell production. Current treatments for DBA have many short- and long-term side effects. The Sakamoto lab has previously showed that the protein Nemo-like Kinase (NLK) is abnormally active in DBA patients. Preliminary experiments from the lab have identified two molecules that inhibit NLK and can improve the production of red blood cells. Kevin will be conducting in-depth statistical analysis to further define the role of these two molecules in cell models of DBA, in the hopes of finding new therapies for this disease.