The Coniglio Lab
Salvatore Coniglio, PhD
Dr. Sal Coniglio is an Assistant Professor of Chemical Biology and Coordinator of the MS Biotechnology program at NJCSTM. Dr. Coniglio’s laboratory seeks to understand the communication that occurs between tumor cells and normal cells within the microenvironment, in particular cells of the myeloid lineage. He discovered that the growth factor CSF-1 is secreted by high grade glioblastoma cells and plays a critical role in mediating disease progression. His lab is currently investigating which factors cooperate with CSF-1 in "reprogramming" the microenvironment and potential therapeutic avenues to disrupt these pathways.
Assays commonly employed in the laboratory include: quantitative PCR, SDS-PAGE electrophoresis, ELISAs, Immunofluorescence, Flow Cytometry and Sorting and 3D microenvironment simulation in-vitro.
Dr. Coniglio received his Ph.D. in Anatomy and Structural Biology from Albert Einstein College of Medicine in 2008. He was an American Cancer Society Postdoctoral Fellow and is a member of the American Association for Cancer Research.
Current Research Focus - Cancer Cell Signaling: Gene Expression Analysis of Tumor-associated Macrophages
Genes control the differentiation, growth and functions of all cells through cell signaling pathways. In this research stream students will attempt to identify genes associated with signaling pathways controlling the growth and differentiation of tumor cells. In Glioblastoma, a rare form of brain cancer, immune macrophages are reprogrammed and affect the growth of the tumor. The role of these cells in tumor progression is poorly understood and altering their activity in the disease could provide a means of inhibiting tumor growth. In this stream students will begin to characterize the genes involved in cell signaling pathways that control the activity of tumor macrophages. Students will learn Quantitative Real Time PCR as a means of identifying genes involved in promoting or inhibiting the growth various cell types associated with the progression of Glioblastoma. This research stream is appropriate for students with interests in: cancer, chemistry, biomedicine, biotechnology, drug discovery, immunology, molecular biology, and neurobiology.