Summary
Project Summary/Abstract The ultimate goal of this proposal is to address a fundamental gap in knowledge on the role of the cell cycle inhibitor p16 in regulating pro-tumorigenic metabolism. The results from these studies could have a significant impact on the treatment of melanoma patients, of which ~30-40% have downregulation or deletion of p16. This research plan focuses on experimentally and mechanistically determining the role of p16 loss in pro-tumorigenic nucleotide metabolism and whether this pathway can be targeted in p16-low melanomas alone or in combination with mutant BRAF inhibito