Title: Proton and high-LET radiobiology research at the RadNet Birmingham Centre
With great joy, we would like to invite you to the sixth BNCT International Webinar. The speaker will be Jason Parsons, PhD in Medical Biochemistry, Director of CRUK RadNet Birmingham and Chair of the Association for Radiation Research (ARR).
The webinar will be held virtually (zoom platform), on Friday 21th March at 10 UTC. It will be a 45-minute webinar: 30 minutes exposition + 15 minutes discussion. We will have to stick to the time because participants will be from all over the world!
Name: Jason Parsons
Title: Proton and high-LET radiobiology research at the RadNet Birmingham Centre
Abstract:
The use of particle therapy (such as protons) is increasing as it enables more precise radiation delivery to the tumour via the Bragg peak, thus sparing the healthy tissues and organs at risk. Radiotherapy of significantly higher ionisation density (LET), such as helium ions and boron neutron capture therapy (BNCT), can furthermore be used to increase the biological effectiveness in tumour cell killing. However, there is still significant biological and clinical uncertainty of the precise effects of protons and high-LET radiation. This talk will reveal our current evidence to date examining the effects of protons at different LET’s on cell survival related to DNA damage and repair (particularly complex DNA damage, CDD, containing multiple DNA lesions in close proximity) in tumour models of the head and neck plus adult brain (glioblastoma). Using siRNA screening, we have also identified specific cellular proteins such as PARP, PARG and OGG1 that are essential for the repair of CDD induced by relatively high-LET protons, and demonstrated that the use of specific inhibitors against these proteins that further exacerbate tumour cell killing. Using our unique radiation facilities at the University of Birmingham including the MC-40 cyclotron and the high-flux accelerator-driven neutron source, research is now underway to explore the radiobiology of higher LET helium ions and BNCT on tumour cell lines, spheroids, patient-derived organoid, plus the chicken embryo model. Our goal is to identify optimal radiotherapy strategies for tumours of the head, neck and brain which can be utilised clinically for the benefit of cancer patients.
Biography:
Jason acquired his BSc and PhD in Medical Biochemistry from University of Birmingham. He had postdoctoral research experience at the CRUK Paterson Institute for Cancer Research in Manchester, at the MRC Radiation and Genome Stability Unit in Harwell, and worked as a Senior Investigator Scientist at the CRUK/MRC Gray Institute for Radiation Oncology and Biology at the University of Oxford. Jason began his independent research at the University of Liverpool in 2012, moving to the University of Birmingham in 2023 as Chair of Radiobiology. The Parsons Group focuses on analysing the molecular and cellular impact of different sources of radiotherapy (photons/protons/particle ions) with increasing ionisation densities (LET) on tumour models, particularly the head and neck and adult brain. The major aim is identification of strategies using combinatorial drugs/inhibitors leading to optimal radiotherapy efficacy in cancer treatment. Jason is Director of CRUK RadNet Birmingham, is currently funded by grants from MRC and NIH, and is Chair of the Association for Radiation Research (ARR).