Dr. Sam W. Lee is a longtime Harvard Medical School dermatology professor who holds responsibilities as associate director with the Massachusetts General Hospital’s Cutaneous Biology Research Center. Dr. Sam W. Lee also serves as a National Institutes of Health (NIH) chartered committee member within the oncology program.
Dr. Lee’s primary research focus is on tumor suppressor p53-mediated transcriptional regulation and how this determines whether cells live or die. Through apoptosis (programmed cell death), radiation, and chemo, agents are able to generate genotoxic stress that eliminates tumor cells. At the same time, the transcription factor p53 is activated when cellular stresses occur. This factor governs a number of essential cellular programs, from apoptosis to cell cycle arrest.
The function of p53 extends to post-apoptotic events and its role in quickly and efficiently clearing apoptotic cells helps maintain tolerance when physiological conditions occur and prevent inflammation. This role as master regulator is accomplished though the new target DD1α and enables a dead cell phagocytic engulfment process following ionizing radiation and other apoptotic stresses.
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