Frans Van Roy
Molecular Cell Biology
VIB Department for Molecular Biomedical Research, UGent

PhD: Univ. of Ghent, Ghent, Belgium, '78 VIB Group leader since 1996 Scientific Director, Dept. for Molecular Biomedical Research since 1997

e-mail phone +32 9 331 36 04 ADDRESS

Current team members
Group leader: Frans Van Roy
Staff scientist: Jolanda van Hengel
Postdoctoral scientists: Huiyu Tian, Karl Vandepoele, Tetyana Sklyarova
Ph.D. Students: Eleonora Billi, Irene Kahr, Koen Tyberghein, Vanessa Andries
Support personnel: Ellen Sanders, Katrien Staes, Philippe Fonteyne

Keywords
cadherin, catenin, plakophilin - tumor suppressor - cancer malignancy - invasion and metastasis

Science

For several years this research group has been focusing on the invasion and tumor suppressor roles of the cell-cell adhesion molecule E-cadherin, and on associated or related proteins. In a majority of aggressive epithelial tumor cells, the pivotal E-cadherin gene either bears inactivating mutations or is transcriptionally silenced. A third and intriguing possibility is the dysregulation of cadherin functionality at the level of its cytoplasmic anchoring via a variety of catenins to the cytoskeleton.
Numerous new structural and regulatory proteins were recently localized in the cell adhesion junctions, often in a cell-type and tissue-specific manner. Some of these proteins can function in both the cytoplasm and the nucleus. Notable examples are armadillo proteins such as β-catenin, p120ctn and plakophilins.

We aim at a thorough understanding and meaningful functional
interpretation of the expression patterns and mutual interactions of these proteins, under both normal and pathological conditions.
Moreover, we are scrutinizing several recently discovered novel genes and proteins that appear to have either a tumor suppressor role, or an oncogenic or invasion stimulatory role.

Goossens S, Janssens B, Bonné S, De Rycke R, Braet F, van Hengel J, Van Roy F
A unique and specific interaction between {alpha}T-catenin and plakophilin-2 in the area composita, the mixed-type junctional structure of cardiac intercalated discs
J CELL SCI 120, 2126-36, 2007



Strumane K, Bonnomet A, Stove C, Vandenbroucke R, Nawrocki-Raby B, Bruyneel E, Mareel M, Birembaut P, Berx G, Van Roy F
E-Cadherin Regulates Human Nanos1, which Interacts with p120ctn and Induces Tumor Cell Migration and Invasion
CANCER RES 66, 10007-15, 2006



Vandepoele K, Van Roy N, Staes K, Speleman F, Van Roy F
A Novel Gene Family NBPF: Intricate Structure Generated by Gene Duplications During Primate Evolution
MOL BIOL EVOL 22, 2265-2274, 2005



Van Roy F, Mccrea d
A role for Kaiso-p120ctn complexes in cancer?
NAT REV CANCER 5, 956-964, 2005



Bonné S, Gilbert B, Hatzfeld M, Chen X, Green j, Van Roy F
Defining desmosomal plakophilin-3 interactions
J CELL BIOL 161, 403-416, 2003

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