Professor David Callen

Biography/ Background

Professor David Callen is a Senior Postdoctoral Researcher and is
Head of the Breast Cancer Genetics Group in the Discipline of Medicine. The
research interests of David Callen are the functional characterisation of
cancer genes with the major focus on breast cancer tumour suppressors located
on the long arm of human chromosome 16. This research involves collaboration
with groups both within Australia and overseas. He has published over 200 peer-
reviewed articles on his research and was actively involved in the Chromosome
16 Human Genome Project at an international level. David Callen is a Post-
graduate Coordinator in the School of Medicine. 
The research is funded by on-going grants from the National Breast Cancer
Foundation, The Cancer Council of SA, Australian Research Council and the San 
Remo Company. These studies aim to elucidate novel tumour suppressor circuitry
in cancer as an approach for the development of new cancer diagnostics and
therapeutics. The current research group is situated within the Hanson 
Institute and includes Dr Raman Sharma and Dr Paul Neilsen together with 
several other research staff and PhD students. 
The region of chromosome 16 at band 16q24.3 is the location of breast cancer
tumour suppressors. The genes FBXO31, CBFA2T3 and ANKRD11 are the focus of
present research by the Breast Cancer Genetics Group.
FBXO31 is a cell cycle related F-box protein that as part of an SCF complex
that recruits and targets substrate proteins for degradation.  The current
research involves the identification of FBXO31 substrates.
CBFA2T3 is the critical protein of a transcriptional repressor complex. The
Breast Cancer Genetics Group has identified that ZNF652 is recruited by
CBFA2T3 and provides gene specific activity. The DNA binding sequence of
ZNF652 has now been identified and identification of the gene targets of
ZNF652-CBFA2T3 repression is in progress.
ANKRD11 interacts with the critical tumour suppressor gene p53 and potentiates
its activity as a activator of transcription. The role and function of ANKRD11
in the p53 pathway is the subject of ongoing research.

Publications

RECENT PUBLICATIONS:

1. Martin J, Han C, Gordon LA, Terry A, Prabhakar S, She X, Xie G, Hellsten U, Chan YM, Altherr M, Couronne O, Aerts A, Bajorek E, Black S, Blumer H, Branscomb E, Brown NC, Bruno WJ, Buckingham JM, Callen DF et al, (2004) The sequence and analysis of duplication-rich human chromosome 16. Nature 432:988-994.

2. Kumar R, Neilsen PM, Crawford J, McKirdy R, Lee J, Powell JA, Saif Z, Martin JM, Lombaerts M, Cornelisse CJ, Cleton-Jansen A-M, Callen DF. (2005) FBXO31 is the chromosome 16q24.3 senescence gene, a candidate breast tumor suppressor, and a component of an SCF complex. Cancer Res 65:11304-11313.

3. Kumar R, Manning J, Spendlove HE, Kremmidiotis G, McKirdy R, Lee J, Millband DN, Cheney KM, Stampfer MR, Dwivedi PP, Morris HA, Callen DF. (2006) ZNF652, a novel zinc finger protein, interacts with the putative breast tumor suppressor CBFA2T3 to repress transcription. Mol Cancer Res 4(9):655-65.

4. Holm R, Knopp S, Kumar R, Lee J, Nesland JM, Tropè C, Callen DF. (2008) Expression of ZNF652, a novel zinc finger protein, in vulvar carcinomas and its relation to prognosis. J Clin Pathol. 61:59-63.

5. Kumar R, Cheney KM, McKirdy R, Neilsen PM, Schulz RB, Lee J, Cohen J, Booker GW, Callen DF. (2008) CBFA2T3-ZNF652 corepressor complex regulates transcription of the E-box gene HEB. J Biol Chem, 283: 19026-38. 6. Neilsen PM, Cheney KM, Li C-W, Chen D, Cawrse JE, Powell JA, Kumar R, Callen DF (2008) Identification of ANKRD11 as a novel p53 coactivator. J Cell Science 121: 3541-52 

Entry last updated: Tuesday, 24 Mar 2009