Our Research

The goal of the Halberg lab is to understand how cancer cells and the surrounding microenvironment  adapt to changes in diet and physiological homeostasis. Our major current focus is to delineate the molecular mechanisms by which obesity causes cancer. This includes obesity-dependent regulation of cell-cell interactions within the tumor ecosystems as well as epigenetic control of cancer cell subpopulation dynamics.   

Single Cell
​Technologies

We apply high dimensional imaging mass cytometry to analyze diet-induced changes to cancer cell differentiations states (plasticity) and its microenvironment
​(inflammation and fibrosis) in murine and human tumors

Mouse Modelling
​

To gauge the effects of the complex obese environment on tumors, we have developed multiple in vivo models of both primary tumor growth and metastatic colonization in obese/non-obese mice.

Patient Analysis
​

We have several close collaborations with clinical environments that allow us to test our hypotheis on patient materials (TMA, transcriptomics)

Transcriptional Regulatio​n

To molecularly determine the cellular adaptation mechanisms to obese environments, we employ systems analysis of epigenetic (scATACseq), transcriptional (RNAseq/Cut&Run) and translational (RiboSeq) event.