Pediatric high grade glioma (pHGG) is a devastating disease with a median survival of ~12 months. Intriguingly, in pHGG, mutations in the epigenetic machinery often co-occur with RAS pathway mutations. Dr. De Raedt’s goal is to study and understand the RAS pathway itself, and identify and understand how epigenetic mutations cooperate with RAS pathway activation. He also has an interest in developing novel therapeutic approaches, including immunotherapy.

Specifically, Dr. De Readt is investigating functional validation and identification of new epigenetic drivers. In the current era of next generation sequencing, identifying potential new drivers for cancer is no longer a bottleneck. A major challenge, however, remains the rapid functional validation of the vast number of genes that were found mutated or lost. With regards to functional validation, in vivo modeling remains a state-of-the-art discovery tool.

Along with his colleagues, Dr. De Raedt is exploring new therapies for CNS tumors. One of the most promising developments in recent years is the successful application of immunotherapy. Dr. De Raedt anticipates that mouse models he and his colleagues develop will be ideal for testing immunotherapy in central nervous system tumors.

Finally, Dr. De Raedt investigates the activation of RAS transcriptional programs important for transformation. Although RAS signaling cascades have been well studied, a complete picture of which transcription factors downstream of RAS and which direct target genes are important to drive transformation in brain tumors is currently lacking. A profound understanding of the importance of these downstream factors will provide unprecedented mechanistic insight into how the RAS transcriptional program is driven and how it can be exploited for the development of therapies.

Dr. De Raedt’s notable accomplishments and experience include:

• Expertise in signaling pathways and epigenetics
• Expertise in mouse modeling
• Expertise in translational research that has led to multiple clinical trials

BS, Katholieke Universiteit Leuven, Belgium (Bioengineering), 1997

PhD, Katholieke Universiteit Leuven, Belgium (Medical Sciences), 2006

Research Scientist

Assistant Professor of Pediatrics

Scholarship of the Flemish League Against Cancer, 2004

Scholarship of the Belgian American Education Foundation, 2007

Young Investigator Award, Children's Tumor Foundation, 2010

Excellence in Teaching Award, Harvard University, 2011

The De Raedt Lab