Surgical and Molecular Neuro-Oncology Unit - Division of Intramural Research

 John   Park  M.D., Ph.D., Investigator

Dr. Park received an Sc.B. from Brown University in 1985 and an M.D.,Ph.D. from Harvard Medical School in 1992. As an undergraduate, he worked under Dr. Ford Ebner and characterized the growth of neocortical brain transplants. His graduate thesis under Drs. Steven Burakoff and Fred Rosen was on the role of the CD43 molecule in the immune response. In 1998, he completed the Harvard Medical School/Children's Hospital/Brigham and Women's Hospital neurosurgery residency program and joined the faculty of these institutions. In the laboratory of Dr. Charles Stiles at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, he studied the role of immediate early genes in neural stem cell development. He has received awards from the American Brain Tumor Association, the Pediatric Section of the AANS and CNS, the New England Cancer Society, and the Neurosurgery Research and Education Foundation. Dr. Park joined the NINDS as a tenure track investigator in 2002 and is head of the Surgical and Molecular Neuro-oncology Unit. His laboratory investigates the mechanisms of brain tumor development and chemotherapy resistance. A board certified neurosurgeon, Dr. Park specializes in the surgical treatment of patients with primary and metastatic brain tumors, particularly those in eloquent brain areas.

Laboratory Staff

Yong Choi, Ph.D. Research Fellow 
Tiffany Hodges, B.S. Clinical Fellow  301-451- 7207
Sariah Khormaee, B.S. Graduate Student 
Andrea Sedlock, B.S., M.S Biologist  301-402- 6934

Research Interests

Malignant gliomas, the most common primary intrinsic tumors of the brain, are highly lethal and are associated with median survivals of one to three years. In recent years, there has been increasing evidence that the cells of origin for these tumors are transformed neural stem cells, commonly referred to as “tumor stem cells.” One focus of the laboratory is the characterization of the normal and aberrant developmental processes used by these cells as they grow and develop into tumors. In particular, we are examining the transcriptional events that drive the differentiation of normal and malignant neural stem cells into astrocytes and glioma cells, respectively. The goal of the research is the identification and development of novel targets and strategies for the treatment of malignant gliomas.

Selected Recent Publications

Liang X-J, Choi Y, Sackett DL, Park JK
Nitrosoureas Inhibit the Stathmin-Mediated Migration and Invasion of Malignant Glioma Cells - Cancer Research  68 5267-72 2008

Jarboe JS, Johnson KR, Choi Y, Lonser RR, Park JK
Expression of Interleukin-13 Receptor alpha 2 in Glioblastoma Multiforme: Implications for Targeted Therapies - Cancer Research  67 7983-7986 2007

Ngo TT, Peng T, Liang XJ, Akeju O, Pastorino S, Zhang W, Kotliarov Y, Zenklusen JC, Fine HA, Maric D, Wen PY, De Girolami U, Black PM, Wu WW, Shen RF, Jeffries NO, Kang DW, Park JK.
The 1p-encoded protein stathmin and resistance of malignant gliomas to nitrosoureas. - J Natl Cancer Inst  99(8) 639-52 2007

Park DM, Li J, Okamoto H, Akeju O, Kim SH, Lubensky I, Vortmeyer A, Dambrosia J, Weil RJ, Oldfield EH, Park JK*, Zhuang P* (*corresponding authors)
N-CoR pathway targeting induces glioblastoma derived cancer stem cell differentiation - Cell Cycle  6(4) 467-70 2007

Lee J, Kotliarova S, Kotliarov Y, Li A, Su Q, Donin NM, Pastorino S, Purow BW, Christopher N, Zhang W, Park JK, Fine HA.
Tumor stem cells derived from glioblastomas cultured in bFGF and EGF more closely mirror the phenotype and genotype of primary tumors than do serum-cultured cell lines. - Cancer Cell  9(5) 391-403 2006

Akeju O, Peng T, Park JK.
Short hairpin RNA loop design for the facilitation of sequence verification. - Biotechniques  40(2) 154-156 2006

Selected Earlier Publications

Contact Information

Surgical Neurology Branch, NINDS Porter Neuroscience Research Center  Building 35, Room 2B-1002  35 Convent Drive, MSC 3706 Bethesda MD  20892-3706

Telephone: 301-402- 6935 (office), 301- 402-6935 (laboratory), 301-480- 0099 (fax), Email: parkjo@ninds.nih.gov