Cook - Davis - 2026

Therapeutic targeting of prostate cancer bone metastasis: a computational approach

The primary focus of the Cook laboratory is to develop innovative strategies to target bone metastatic prostate cancer. Prostate cancer spreads to bone more frequently than any other tissue. In bone, prostate cancer cells hijack normal bone remodeling processes and cause excessive bone breakdown and, uniquely to prostate cancer, excessive formation of weak and brittle bone causing symptoms of pain, increased risk of fracture, and even death. Bone metastatic prostate cancer is currently incurable. A limitation of developing efficient therapy lies in the complexity of the bone and tumor microenvironment. To overcome this limitation, the Cook Lab is developing a computational model to mimic the interactions of metastatic prostate cancer in bone. For testing of therapeutic intervention currently being explored in the Cook Laboratory, we are examining how neutrophils (the most abundant immune cell in bone with implications in tumor progression) and current standard therapy can be modified to improve therapeutic response.

For this project, the student will work with both Dr. Cook and Dr. Davis:

1. Participate in running of model simulations, data collection, and interpretation
2. Assist in lab testing of computational model outputs using in vitro cell assays in the Cook Lab
3. Assist in optimizing of computational model based on wet-lab experimental assays

Throughout this project, the selected student will receive mentorship within an active interdisciplinary laboratory setting with access to multiple equipment and technology. The student will gain experience in design and execution of experiments for testing immune-oncology therapeutic responses. Our laboratory is part of CCR, a premier cancer research program located on the NCI campus in Frederick, Maryland.