Metabolic reprogramming in tumors - the activation and inactivation of chemical processes in cancer cells to allow them to grow and spread - is a hallmark of most cancer types and has proven to be a source of therapeutic targets. But identifying targetable metabolic vulnerabilities requires specialized equipment and staff to acquire data and interpret it. Since 2012, The Children's Research Institute Metabolomics Core at UT Southwestern has been a leading resource in Texas for laboratories studying cancer metabolism. We support nearly 150 labs in Texas and beyond, offering assays that thoroughly characterize the metabolic state of tumors in mice and patients. However the Core's success has c...

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Metabolic reprogramming in tumors - the activation and inactivation of chemical processes in cancer cells to allow them to grow and spread - is a hallmark of most cancer types and has proven to be a source of therapeutic targets. But identifying targetable metabolic vulnerabilities requires specialized equipment and staff to acquire data and interpret it. Since 2012, The Children's Research Institute Metabolomics Core at UT Southwestern has been a leading resource in Texas for laboratories studying cancer metabolism. We support nearly 150 labs in Texas and beyond, offering assays that thoroughly characterize the metabolic state of tumors in mice and patients. However the Core's success has caused demand from the user group to outpace our capabilities in data analysis. To better support existing users and expand our reach to new users, we will improve the Core in three ways. First, we will develop new data processing tools to provide our users with higher quality data in less time. Second, we will build a website containing new user-friendly tools for scientists to store, process and share their data. Third, we will develop a new assay to detect and quantify metabolites derived from the "microbiome", the bacteria that live in our guts and influence many aspects of our health, including cancer risk and response to therapy. Our overall goal is to continue the CRI Metabolomics Core's track record of discovery while providing better support to a growing number of cancer researchers across the state, helping to make Texas the worldwide epicenter of discovery in cancer metabolism.

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