The tumour suppressor PTEN is the principal brake on the PI3K pathway. Loss of PTEN function, which is common across many cancers, dysregulates lipid signalling and leads to unchecked growth and survival. Our research focuses on the lipidomic changes that follow PTEN loss and how those alterations contribute to tumourigenesis and progression.
Using lipidomic profiling, we track specific changes in lipid metabolism — phosphoinositides, sphingolipids and other membrane-associated lipids — and ask how they affect key cellular processes. We are also testing whether those changes can serve as biomarkers for early diagnosis or prognosis. The work may reveal lipid-based and lipid-regulated targets for therapeutic intervention in PTEN-null cancers.