Jak-Stat Signalling: From Basics to Disease

Jaks (Janus kinases) and Stats (signal transducers and activators of transcription) form a unique, fast track for signal transduction from cell surface receptors to target genes. Jak-Stat signalling contributes in many ways to organismic integrity and disturbance of this signalling avenue causes disease in mammalian organisms, including humans. The present initiative SFB-JakStat pools existing resources by creating a veritable JakStat-platform that might constitute the largest one in Europe. This state-of-the-art scientific network of the nine synergistic interacting basic research-oriented groups from three different Viennese universities, the research Institute of Molecular Pathology and the Ludwig Boltzmann Institute of Cancer Research will fundamentally improve international competitiveness.

SFB-JakStat presents one management and four scientific work packages. The four scientific work packages address the role of Jaks and/or Stats in two important categories of disease: infection/inflammation and cancer. The highly focussed research within these work packages ‚Jak-Stat in inflammation and immune responses', ‚Jak-Stat in hematopoiesis and leukemogenesis', ‚Jak-Stat in carcinoma' (esp. liver cancer) and ‚Jak-Stat in novel mechanisms of action' will shed new light on the canonical and non-canonical signalling events linking infection, inflammation and cancer.

Central to SFB-JakStat is an enabling and technology platform comprising the four toolboxes ‚Gene-modified Mice' (Austrian Center of Biomodels and Transgentics), ‚Advanced Cell Culture Models', ‚Molecular Jak-Stat Tools' and ‚Jak-Stat Expression Profiles/Bioinformatics'.