Emina Huang, M.D., an associate professor of surgery in UF’s College of Medicine, has received a $180,000 grant from the Florida Department of Health’s Bankhead-Coley Cancer Research Program to fund her research into the origins of colon cancer.
Huang and her team of researchers will work with cancer cells and colon cells affected by ulcerative colitis to learn how interleukin-8, an immune system protein thought to contribute to cancer growth, influences the development of colorectal cancer in people who have ulcerative colitis.
Huang’s research team for the project includes Edward W. Scott, Ph.D., a professor of molecular genetics and microbiology at UF and director of the Program in Stem Cell Biology and Regenerative Medicine; Myron Chang, Ph.D., a professor of epidemiology and health policy research; Robert C. Fisher, Ph.D., a research scientist working in the department of surgery; Amanda LoGuidice, Ph.D., a post-doctoral research associate, and Lu Corrie, B.A., a biological scientist in the department.