Cancer and Zebrafish

This volume focuses on defining the unique attributes of using the zebrafish cancer model for discovering important pathways and potential drug targets for the treatment of human cancers. Using the zebrafish model, the volume explores oncogene and tumor suppressor discovery, chemical genetic approaches, genomics, epigenetics, cancer imaging, and cell transplantation. Contributed chapters come from the most prominent laboratories working in this field, which provides a unique perspective on zebrafish models from a wide spectrum of the research community. In addition, the book offers a detailed analysis of the most current research in the area for specific zebrafish cancer models, including T cell leukemia, rhabdomyosarcoma, liver and pancreatic cancer, melanoma, neuroblastoma, germ cell tumors, and malignant peripheral sheath tumors. A chapter is also dedicated to the development and utilization of other piscine models of cancer. The compilation of chapters in the volume culminates into a comprehensive and definitive text on zebrafish and cancer, providing a much needed resource on the powerful attributes of the zebrafish model system.


Dr. Langenau is an Associate Professor at Harvard Medical School and Associate Pathologist at the Massachusetts General Hospital.  Dr. Langenau is joint-appointed through the Department of Pathology, the Cancer Center and the Center for Regenerative Medicine at the Massachusetts General Hospital. Dr. Langenau is also a principal faculty member at the Harvard Stem Cell Institute (HSCI) and a member of the Dana-Farber/Harvard Cancer Center. Dr. Langenau runs an active research group that focuses on uncovering mechanisms of progression and relapse in pediatic cancer.  He has become a pioneer in using zebrafish to understand human cancer biology. His group has used the zebrafish model to dynamically visualize the hallmarks of cancer in live animals, to develop drug screening approaches to kill relapse-driving tumor propagating cells, and to uncover oncogenic drivers conserved in zebrafish and humans using bioinformatic approaches and cross-species comparisons.