Haber & Maheswaran Labs
About us
The Haber & Maheswaran labs interests include targeted therapy of cancer, with a focus on the biology of Circulating Tumor Cells (CTCs); monitoring and suppressing blood-based metastasis, and early detection of invasive cancers.
The group is codirected by Dr. Daniel Haber and Dr. Shyamala Maheswaran, working in close collaboration with the bioengineering team led by Dr. Mehmet Toner.
Current projects include ultra-high throughput microfluidics to capture CTCs for single cell genetic and epigenetic analyses, defining pathways that regulate survival and vulnerabilities of CTCs in the bloodstream, and novel applications for early detection of invasive cancer.
Lab support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute; National Institutes of Health; Breast Cancer Research Foundation; National Foundation for Cancer Research.
Cluster of circulating prostate tumor cells from a patient blood sample, stained for PSA (red) along with proliferation marker Ki67 (orange). An attached leukocyte is stained for hematopoietic marker CD45 (green).
Circulating tumor cells: a unique model
Cancer cells spread through the bloodstream to distal sites, initiating metastasis. The ability to capture rare viable circulating tumor cells (CTCs) from blood specimens offers a unique opportunity to study such metastatic precursors. Our experimental approaches have benefitted from a unique set of microfluidic technologies derived from a longstanding collaboration with the bioengineering team led by Dr. Mehmet Toner and their applications across lung, breast and prostate cancers, and melanoma, in collaboration with clinical investigators within the MGH Cancer Center clinical disease centers. Using both patient-derived specimens and mouse models, we use CTCs and CTC-derived cell lines to monitor cancer evolution in response to therapeutic interventions; identify vulnerabilities in metastatic precursors to suppress blood-based metastasis; and apply novel molecular strategies to explore blood-based early detection of cancer.
Learn more about our science!
Publications
Most recent and featured publications of the Haber & Maheswaran Labs.
Positions available
Postdoctoral fellows & graduate students
We look forward to meeting with highly motivated candidates, capable of independent work, with a Ph.D. or M.D., and expertise in molecular biology and/or computational biology. Preferred qualifications include in-depth training in molecular genetics, epigenetics, signaling and/or bioinformatic analyses.
Please email a cover letter with a brief statement of your research interests along with your current CV.
The lab is a member of the Harvard Medical School BBS Graduate Program, and welcomes graduate student rotations.
Research technicians
We are interested in recruiting college graduates who have wet lab expertise, and are seeking hands-on work experience before embarking on the next stage of their education/career.
Please email a cover letter with a brief statement of your research interests along with your current CV.
