Rina Rosin-Arbesfeld

I am a scientist at the Faculty of Medical and Health Sciences at Tel Aviv University. My laboratory focuses on the molecular and biochemical aspects of the Wnt signal transduction pathway. This important pathway plays a major role in various cellular processes, including homeostasis, proliferation, and differentiation. Thus, aberrant cascade activation can be extremely harmful and is implicated in many cancer syndromes, especially colorectal cancer (CRC). Our work includes identifying new components that either initiate or activate the Wnt signaling cascade. This is performed by screening DNA or siRNA libraries (CRISPR/Cas9). The candidates are further analyzed and studied in relation to their specific function in the Wnt cascade. We are also studying novel roles of Wnt signaling in the bloodstream in health and in different cancer types, establishing clinical methods of restoring the function of the tumor suppressor protein Adenomatous Polyposis Coli (APC) by nonsense mutation “read-through” therapy, and examining the relationship between Wnt and the microbiome. We continuously study the interaction of the Wnt signaling with additional pathways and proteins in different cancer types.