Dave Lee

Dave Lee is a medical student who completed three years at Loma Linda University School of Medicine and is working at the Kirane Lab this year as a life science technician. He began his endeavor in cancer research under the mentorship of Professor John Kuriyan at the University of California, Berkeley. There he studied the molecular mechanisms and dynamics of KRas, a commonly implicated oncogenic protein, through a combination of saturation mutagenesis with an inducible bacterial two-hybrid assay.

With his work, he won the Kazuo Gerald Yanaba & Ting Jung Memorial Prize by demonstrating epistatic coupling between two distinct regions of KRas: switch II and helix 5. This partially explained why not all “gain of function” mutations resulted in a constitutively active cancer product. Through medical school, he has engaged in research topics including E6 inhibition to prevent HPV squamous cell carcinoma and the optimal management of blunt abdominal trauma. His research interests lie in understanding the multiple pathways that lead to cancer and finding creative ways to target key molecular players in said pathways.

Outside of lab, Dave is interested in helping to serve patients at the community and statewide level respectively, with his roles as a Street Medicine Site Leader and as a member of the California Medical Association Medical Student Executive Board.

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Publications

• Hidalgo, F. et al., Lee, D., Kuriyan Lab (2022). A saturation-mutagenesis analysis of the interplay between stability and activation in Ras. eLife, 11, e76595. https://doi.org/10.7554/eLife.76595

• Whang, S. N. et al., Lee, DJH., Duerkson-Hughes Lab (2022). Convalescent Plasma for COVID-19: A Single Center Prospective Experience with Serial Antibody Measurements and Review of the Literature. Pathogens (Basel, Switzerland), 11(9), 958. https://doi.org/10.3390/pathogens11090958

• Chen, M., Lee, David, Wong, Becky (2023). Innovations in Diagnostic and Treatment Options for Pediatric Epilepsy and Their Anesthetic Implications. Submission accepted

• Whang, S. N. et al., Lee, DJH., Duerkson-Hughes Lab (2023). 30-hydroxygambogic acid increases cisplatin efficacy in an HPV+ HNSCC xenograft model. Submission pending

• Ahmad M. Usman, Lee David, (...), Spain, David (2023). Angioembolization for Splenic Injuries - Does it Help? A Retrospective Evaluation of Grade III-V Splenic Injuries at Two Level 1 Trauma Centers. Submission pending

•  Lee, D., Roman, M. et al. (2023). Large Intestinal Obstruction and Perforation from Metastatic Merkel Cell Carcinoma: A Case Report and Review of Literature. Submission pending