Update Your ProfileAcademic Title:
Assistant Professor
Primary Appointment:
Pharmacology
Additional Title:
Assistant Professor in Pharmacology (tenure-track) Greenebaum Comprehensive Cancer Center
Location:
655 W. Baltimore St Bressler Research Building Rm 10-039
Phone (Primary):
4107063261
Education and Training
University of Central Florida, BS, Biological Sciences, 2007
Barry University, MS, Biomedical Sciences, 2009
Drexel University College of Medicine, PhD, Molecular and Cell Biology & Genetics, 2015
Massachusetts General Hospital Cancer Center and Harvard Medical School, Postdoctoral Study, 2020
Massachusetts General Hospital Cancer Center and Harvard Medical School, Instructor in Medicine, 2022
Biosketch
Our lab studies metastatic initiation, dissemination, and outgrowth with a particular focus on the mechanisms regulating this progress in pancreatic cancer. We use a combination of genetic, pharmacological, in vitro and in vivo techniques to study the cell intrinsic and microenvironmental mechanisms that enhance the survival of metastatic tumors. Our goal is to identify novel therapeutic targets to target dissemination cells, existing metastases and overcome chemoresistance.
To find out more about our research:
http://www.ferrerlab.com
Research/Clinical Keywords
cancer metastasis, pancreatic cancer, metastasis-initiating cells, dissemination, pancreatic cancer metastasis
Highlighted Publications
Ferrer, C. M., Lynch, T. P., Sodi, V., Falcone, J. N., Schwab, L., Peacock, D., Vocadlo, D.J., Seagroves, T. N., and Reginato, M. J. Nutrient sensor O-GlcNAcylation regulates cancer metabolism and survival stress signaling via regulation of HIF-1 pathway. Molecular Cell (2014) Jun 5;54(5):820-31.
Ferrer, C. M. and Reginato, M. J. Cancer Metabolism: Crosstalk between Signaling and O-GlcNAcylation; InCancer Genomics and Proteomics: Methods and Protocols; Narendra Wajapeyee (Editor). Humana Press; (2014) vol. 1176,2nd ed, XII, 304 p.
Ferrer, C. M., and Reginato, M. J. Sticking to Sugars at the Metastatic Site: Sialyltransferase ST6GalNAc2 acts as Breast Cancer Metastasis Suppressor. Cancer Discovery (2014) Mar; 4(3):275-7.
Ferrer, C. M., and Reginato, M. J. Sweet Connections: O-GlcNAcylation links cancer metabolism and survival. Molecular & Cellular Oncology (2015) Jan-Mar; 2(1): e961809.
Ferrer, C. M., Lu, T. Sinclair, D. A., and Reginato, M. J. O-GlcNAcylation regulates cancer cell invasion via the NAD+-dependent longevity protein SIRT1. Oncogene (2016) Jan 26;36(4):559-569.
Ferrer, C.M., Sodi, V.L., and Reginato, M. J. O-GlcNAcylation in Cancer Biology: Linking Metabolism and Signaling. Journal of Molecular Biology (2016) Aug 14;428(16):3282-3294.
Ferrer, C.M.*, Alders, M. *, Postma, A.V. *, Park, S., Klein, M.A., Pajkrt, E., Glas, A., van Koningsbruggen, S., Christoffels, V.M., Mannens, M.A.M., M., Knegt, L., Etchegaray, J.P., Denu, J.M., Mostoslavsky, G., van Maarle, M.C., Mostoslavsky, R. An inactivating mutation in the histone deacetylase SIRT6 causes human perinatal lethality. Genes & Development (2018) Mar 1;32(5-6):373-388. (cover image featured in issue).
*Ferrer, C.M., Cho, H., Boon, R., Bernasocchi T., Wong, L.P., Cetinbas, M., Haggerty, E.R., Mitsiades, I., Wojtkiewicz, G.R., McLoughlin, D.E., Aboushousha, R., Abdelhamid, H., Kugel, S., Rheinbay, E., Sadreyev, R.I., Juric, D., Janssen-Heininger, Y.M., *Mostoslavsky, R. The glutathione S-transferase Gstt1 drives survival and dissemination in metastases. Nature Cell Biology (2024) (in press). *Co-corresponding authors.
Additional Publication Citations
Lynch, T.P., Ferrer, C.M., Jackson, S.R., Shahriari, K.S., Vosseller, K., and Reginato, M.J. Critical role of O-GlcNAc transferase in prostate cancer invasion, angiogenesis, and metastasis. Journal of Biological Chemistry (2012) Mar 30;287(14):11070-81
Sodi, V.L., Bacigalupa, Z.A., Ferrer, C.M., Lee, J.V., Gocal, W.A., Mukhopadhyay, D., Wellen, K.E., Ivan, M., Reginato, M.J. Nutrient sensor O-GlcNAc transferase controls cancer lipid metabolism via SREBP-1 regulation. Oncogene (2018) Feb 15;37(7):924-93.
Etchegaray, J.P., Zhong, L., Li, C., Tomoyoshi, N., Van Rechem, C., Ross, K.N., Samarakkody, A., Ji, F., Ferrer, C., Nechaev, S., Sadreyev, R.I., Goren, A., Ramaswamy, S., Whetstine, J.R., Roeder, R.G., Mostoslavsky, R. The histone deacetylase SIRT6 controls transcription elongation via promoter-proximal pausing. Molecular Cell (2019) Aug 22;75(4):683-699.
Chang, A.R., Ferrer, C.M., Mostoslavsky, R. SIRT6, a Mammalian deacylase with multitasking abilities. Physiological Reviews (2020, invited review) Jan 1;100(1):145-169.
Choi, J., Sebastian, C., Ferrer, C., Lewis, C.A., Sade-Feldman, M., LaSalle, T., Gonye, A., Lopez, B.G.C., Abdelmoula, W.M., Regan, M.S., Cetinbas, M., Pascual, G., Wojtkiewicz, G.R., Silveira, G.G., Boon, R., Ross, K.N., Tirosh, I., Saladi, S.V., Ellisen, L.W., Sadreyev, R.I., Benitah, S.A., Agar, N.Y.R., Hacohen, N., and Mostoslavsky, R. Glycolytic tumor propagating cells drive squamous cell carcinoma by enhancing antioxidant response capacity. Nature Metabolism (2021) Feb 3;(2):182-195.
Sebastián, C., Ferrer, C., Choi, J.E., Serra, M., Ducano, N., Shah, M.S., Isella, C., Maldi, E., Desai, N., Capen, D.E., Medico, E., Cetinbas, M., Sadreyev, R.I., Brown, D., Rivera, M.N., Sapino, A., Breault, D.T., and Mostoslavsky, R. A quiescent intestinal stem cell as the cell-of-origin for the Warburg effect in intestinal cancer. Nature Communications (2022) 2022 Mar 21;13(1):1503.
Linder, S.J., Bernasocchi, T., Martinez-Pastor, B., Sullivan, K.D., Galbraith, M.D., Lewis, C.M., Ferrer, C.M., Boon, R., Shroff, S., Oliviera-Costa, J.P., Silveira, G.S., Ross, K.N., Massri, R., Stott, S.L., Gottlieb, E., Espinosa, J.M., Mostoslavsky, R. Inhibiting P5CS, a rate limiting enzyme in proline metabolism, allows proliferation of glutamine restricted cancer cells. Nature Metabolism, (2023) Dec;5(12):2131-2147.