Next Cancer and Nature of Life – 19th August
Join us at Noon (Arizona time) when our guest will be Professor Paul Turner of Yale University talking about microbes, evolution and cancer. We are taking a break from the series in July!
Transmissible Cancer in Mammals -Watch recording here
Cancer and the Nature of Life Series. Friday 13 May 2022, Noon AZ and Pacific time. Please join us! Brief Abstract: Cancer arises when mutations drive cells of the body to abandon their usual functions and to instead embark upon a “selfish” evolutionary program...
Celebrating Gregor Mendel’s bicentenary
Gregor Mendel is known as the father of genetics who was born 200 years ago in July 1822. His life as a catholic Abbott and meticulous studies with pea plants are described in this radio documentary by ACE's Pauline Davies
Cancer and the Nature of Life Series – Michael Metzger’s talk
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uaec1ETs0hE&t=4s Watch to discover the latest findings on cancer cells that behave like free-living organisms! Brief abstract: Cancer is not normally contagious, but in some cases, cancer can jump from one individual to another. In...
Evolutionary Biology and Ecology of Cancer Summer School 2022 – Applications open
Applications are open for the Evolutionary Biology and Ecology of Cancer Summer School 2022, taking place between June 13-17, 2022 at the Wellcome Genome Campus, UK.Students will have the opportunity to explore various modelling techniques (e.g. agent-based, game...
Summer School
After a two year break, the 2022 Guarda summer school in Evolutionary Biology for master and PhD students returns. The main aim of the course is to develop the skills to produce an independent research project in evolutionary biology.The summer school will take place...
Cancer and Embryo Development Workshop, 17-18 January 2020, Tempe
It has been known for some decades that there is a deep link between tumorigenesis and embryo development. Many of the hallmarks of cancer are also hallmarks of early-stage development: angiogenesis, hypoxia, cell motility, tissue invasion, stemness. It has even been...
Tracing the deep Evolutionary Roots of Cancer workshop
Mon-Wed, April 23-25, 2018 Scottsdale. Cancer represents a breakdown in the regulatory mechanisms that mediate the relationship between individual cells and the organism as a whole, a relationship that dates back to the dawn of multicellularity over a billion years...
Evolutionary Biology and Ecology of Cancer Workshop
Evolutionary biologists and students from around the world gathered in Cambridge, UK for an intensive weeklong workshop in June 2018.
Our Projects
Organismal Evolution and Cancer Defenses
Here we are using Life History Theory to compare cancer rates across species in zoos and wildlife reserves and uncover the selective pressures that reduce cancer defenses in some animals and enhance them in others. Our work will give new clues to cancer avoidance mechanisms that have evolved in the animal kingdom that can be used to prevent and treat cancers in humans.
Somatic Cell Evolution in Small Human Replicative Units
This Project studies somatic cell evolution in human colon crypts and tumor glands to determine whether gene selection or neutral genetic drift is more common during normal human aging and tumor progression. We are also examining the gene functioning of tumor cells in species identified in the Organismal Evolution and Cancer Defenses project (above) to test the predictions of Life History Theory.
This project takes into account both the evolution of cancer cell mutations and the environment surrounding a tumor in order to develop a better predictive test for the invasiveness of a tumor. We will also hope to be able to understand which aspects of a mutation most impact survival and which are most important to target when considering treatment.
We love to talk about our work and explain what we do. One of our research themes concerns the prevalence of cancer throughout the multi-celled world and to illustrate this we have built a cancer cactus garden on the Tempe campus of Arizona State University. Here, the weird and beautiful plant forms illustrate the ubiquity of cancer. Check our progress or visit the garden if you get the chance. We also put on public lectures and seminars – check our events listings – and recordings of past events. If you are a teacher in the Phoenix area and would like a school talk about cancer in animals and plants from our talented team, please contact us. We have been going into lunchtime science clubs in local schools and to full classes to work with children from 5 years up!
