Department Affiliation: Primary: Oncology; Secondary: Pharmacology and Molecular Sciences; Pathology
Degree: M.D., Ph.D. Johns Hopkins University
Rank: James B. Murphy Professor
Telephone Number: 410-955-8839
Fax Number: 410-955-0961
E-mail address: ambinri@jhmi.edu
School of Medicine Address: Room 389, Cancer Research Building, 1650 Orleans Street, Baltimore, MD 21231
Virology in human cancer; antiviral therapy; antitumor therapy; lymphoma biology
Epstein-Barr virus is consistently found in association with a variety of tumors including African Burkitt's lymphoma, nasopharyngeal carcinoma, mixed cellularity Hodgkin's disease, posttransplant lymphoma and AIDS primary central nervous system lymphoma. Our laboratory studies are aimed at better defining the role(s) of the virus in the pathogenesis of these diseases and the development of strategies to prevent, diagnose or treat them. Among the notions that we are exploring is the possibility that immunization with vaccines so as to boost cellular immunity may be useful in preventing post transplant lymphoma, relapse of Hodgkin's disease or relapse of nasopharyngeal carcinoma. In addition we are investigating the impact of anti-B-cell therapy on the viral reservoir and what the implications of short term B-cell ablation may be for the pathogenesis of EBV associated malignancies. Finally, we have a major focus on viral DNA in serum and plasma and the possible role in early diagnosis and disease monitoring.
Representative Publications:
- Gulley, M.L., Glaser, S.L., Craig, F.E., Borowitz, M., Mann, R.B., Shema, S.J., and Ambinder, R.F. Guidelines for interpreting EBER in situ hybridization and LMP1 immunohistochemical tests for detecting Epstein-Barr virus in Hodgkin Lymphoma, Am. J. Clin. Path. 117:259-267, 2002. Pub Med Reference
- Tao, Q., Yang, J., Swinnen, L.J., and Ambinder, R.F. Conservation of epstein-barr virus cytotoxic T cell epitopes in posttransplant lymphomas: Implications for immune therapy, Am. J. Path. 160:1839-1845, 2002. Pub Med Reference
- Murray, P.G., Swinnen, L.J., Flavell, J.R., Ragni, M.V., Baumforth, K.R.N., Toomey, S.M., Filipovich, A.H., Lowe, D., Schnell, C.S., Young, L.S., and Ambinder, R.F. Frequent expression of the tumor necrosis factor receptor-associated factor 1 in latent membrane protein 1-positive posttransplant lymphoproliferative disease and HIV-associated lymphomas, Hum. Path. 32:963-969, 2001. Pub Med Reference
- Akpek, G., Ambinder, R.F., Piantadosi, S., Abrams, R.A., Brodsky, R.A., Vogelsang, G.B., Zahurak, M.L., Fuller, D., Miller, C.B., Noga, S.J., Fuch, E., Flinn, I.W., O’Donnell, P., Seifter, E.J., Mann, R.B., and Jones, R.J. Long-term results of blood and marrow transplantation for Hodgkin’s lymphoma, J. Clin. Onc., 19:4314-4321, 2001. Pub Med Reference
- Moore, S.M., Cannon, J.S., Tanhehco, Y.C., Hamzeh, F.M., and Ambinder, R.F. Induction of Epstein-Barr virus kinases to sensitize tumor cells to nucleoside analogues, Antimicrob. Agents Chemother. 45:2082-2091, 2001. Pub Med Reference
- Clarke, C.A., Glaser, S.A., Dorfman, R.F., Mann, R.B., DiGiuseppe, J.A., Prehn, A.W., and Ambinder, R.F. Epstein-Barr virus and survival after Hodgkin’s disease in a population-based series of women, Cancer 91:1579-1587, 2001. Pub Med Reference
- Yang, J., Lemas, V.M., Flinn, I.W., Krone, C., and Ambinder, R.F. Application of the ELISPOT assay to the characterization of CD8+ responses to Epstein-Barr virus antigens, Blood 95:241-248, 2000. Pub Med Reference
- Cannon, J.S., Ciufo, D., Hawkins, A.L., Griffin, C.A., Borowitz, M.J., Hayward, G.S., and Ambinder, R.F. A new primary effusion lymphoma - derived cell line yields highly infectious Kaposi’s sarcoma herpesvirus supernatant, J. Virol., 74:10187-10193, 2000. Pub Med Reference
- Yang, J., Tao, Q., Flinn, I.W., Murray, P.G., Post, L.E., Ma, H., Piantadosi, S., Caligiuri, M.A., and Ambinder, R.F. Characterization of Epstein Barrr virus-infected B cells in patients with posttransplantation lymphoproliferative disease: Disappearance after rituximab therapy does not predict clinical response, Blood, 96:4055-4063, 2000. Pub Med Reference
- Flinn, I.W., O’Donnell, P.V., Goodrich, A., Vogelsang, G., Abrams, R., Noga, S., Marcellus, D., Borowitz, M., Jones, R., and Ambinder, R.F. Immunotherapy with rituximab during peripheral blood stem cell transplantation for non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma, Biology of Blood and Marrow Transplantation, 6:628-632, 2000. Pub Med Reference
Other graduate programs in which Dr. Ambinder participates:
BCMB Program
Cellular and Molecular Medicine Graduate Program
Anti-Cancer Drug Development Program
