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Associate Professor Heather Cunliffe

Contact Details

Phone
64 3 479 5060
Email
heather.cunliffe@otago.ac.nz

University Links

Position
Associate Professor
Department
Department of Pathology (Dunedin)
Qualifications
BSc(Hons) PhD
Research summary
Translational biomarker discovery in breast and ovarian cancer
Teaching
  • GENE 360 Special Topics in Genetics
  • GENE 411 Current Topics in Genetics (Course Convenor)
  • MELS 304 Principles of Pathology
  • MICN 201 Medicine Second Year
  • MICN 301 Medicine Third Year
  • PATH 201 Foundations in Human Pathology
  • PATH 301 Advanced Pathology
  • PATH 302 Cancer Biology (Course Convenor)
Memberships
  • Member, Health Research South Board
  • Member, Australia New Zealand Gynaecological Oncology Group (ANZGOG)
  • Active Member, American Association for Cancer Research (AACR)
  • Member, AACR-Women in Cancer Research
  • Member, New Zealand Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

Research

The focus of Associate Professor Cunliffe's research is the discovery and validation of biomarkers that will impact therapeutic decision-making and improve treatment outcomes for breast cancer and ovarian cancer patients. Her laboratory leverages genomic, biochemical, and cell-biologic approaches to define and target the pathobiology driving malignant progression in treatment-refractory tumour contexts.

Current areas of interest include:

  • Defining drivers of triple negative breast cancer metastasis
  • The molecular underpinnings of inflammatory breast cancer
  • Identifying tractable therapeutic targets in uncommon and rare ovarian tumours
  • Understanding drivers of chemoresistance in epithelial ovarian cancer

Associate Professor Cunliffe also has an interest and significant expertise in biospecimen science to empower genomics-enabled medicine.

Biography

Associate Professor Cunliffe completed her undergraduate training at Victoria University of Wellington and received her PhD in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology from the University of Otago. She then trained as a Postdoctoral Fellow from 1999–2004 in the Cancer Genetics Branch of the National Human Genome Research Institute, at the National Institutes of Health, in Bethesda, MD, USA. In 2004, Associate Professor Cunliffe joined the research faculty at the Translational Genomics Research Institute (TGen), a not-for-profit biomedical research institute in Phoenix Arizona, where she headed the Breast and Ovarian Cancer Research Unit for 10 years prior to returning to the University of Otago.

Additional details

Publications

Ratajska, M., Sette, C., & Cunliffe, H. E. (2023). 365 days of progress in cancer genetics. Frontiers in Oncology, 13. doi: 10.3389/fonc.2023.1270902

Reader, K. L., John-McHaffie, S., Zellhuber-McMillan, S., Jowett, T., Mottershead, D. G., Cunliffe, H. E., & Gold, E. J. (2023). Activin B and activin C have opposing effects on prostate cancer progression and cell growth. Cancers, 15, 147. doi: 10.3390/cancers15010147

Naro, C., Cunliffe, H. E., & Sette, C. (2022). Insight in cancer genetics: 2022. Frontiers in Oncology, 12, 988310. doi: 10.3389/fonc.2022.988310

Ware, A. W., Harris, J. J., Slatter, T. L., Cunliffe, H. E., & McDonald, F. J. (2021). The epithelial sodium channel has a role in breast cancer cell proliferation. Breast Cancer Research & Treatment, 187, 31-43. doi: 10.1007/s10549-021-06133-7

Kee, D., Parker, C., Bae, S., Tucker, K. M., Harrison, M., Tohidi-Esfahani, I., … Cunliffe, H. E., … Scott, C. L. (2020). CART-WHEEL.org: An ethically approved online database for patient-entered data to facilitate rare cancer research. JCO Clinical Cancer Informatics, 4, 136-146. doi: 10.1200/cci.19.00085

Reader, K. L., John-McHaffie, S., Zellhuber-McMillan, S., Jowett, T., Mottershead, D. G., Cunliffe, H. E., & Gold, E. J. (2023). Activin B and activin C have opposing effects on prostate cancer progression and cell growth. Cancers, 15, 147. doi: 10.3390/cancers15010147

Journal - Research Article

Ware, A. W., Harris, J. J., Slatter, T. L., Cunliffe, H. E., & McDonald, F. J. (2021). The epithelial sodium channel has a role in breast cancer cell proliferation. Breast Cancer Research & Treatment, 187, 31-43. doi: 10.1007/s10549-021-06133-7

Journal - Research Article

Kee, D., Parker, C., Bae, S., Tucker, K. M., Harrison, M., Tohidi-Esfahani, I., … Cunliffe, H. E., … Scott, C. L. (2020). CART-WHEEL.org: An ethically approved online database for patient-entered data to facilitate rare cancer research. JCO Clinical Cancer Informatics, 4, 136-146. doi: 10.1200/cci.19.00085

Journal - Research Article

Mehta, S., McKinney, C., Algie, M., Verma, C. S., Kannan, S., Harfoot, R., … Gould, M. L., Parker, K., … Cunliffe, H. E., … Kleffmann, T., Braithwaite, A. W., & Woolley, A. G. (2020). Dephosphorylation of YB-1 is required for nuclear localisation during G2 phase of the cell cycle. Cancers, 12(2), 315. doi: 10.3390/cancers12020315

Journal - Research Article

Mehta-Mujoo, P. P., Cunliffe, H. E., Hung, N. A., & Slatter, T. L. (2019). Long non-coding RNA ANRIL in the nucleus associates with periostin expression in breast cancer. Frontiers in Oncology, 9, 885. doi: 10.3389/fonc.2019.00885

Journal - Research Article

Mehta, S. Y., Morten, B. C., Antony, J., Henderson, L., Lasham, A., Campbell, H., Cunliffe, H., Horsfield, J. A., … Braithwaite, A. W. (2018). Regulation of the interferon-gamma (IFN-γ) pathway by p63 and Δ133p53 isoform in different breast cancer subtypes. Oncotarget, 9(49), 29146-29161. doi: 10.18632/oncotarget.25635

Journal - Research Article

Hoppe, R., Fan, P., Büttner, F., Winter, S., Tyagi, A. K., Cunliffe, H., … Brauch, H. (2016). Profiles of miRNAs matched to biology in aromatase inhibitor resistant breast cancer. Oncotarget, 7(44), 71235-71254. doi: 10.18632/oncotarget.12103

Journal - Research Article

Witkowski, L., Goudie, C., Ramos, P., Boshari, T., Brunet, J.-S., Karnezis, A. N., … Cunliffe, H., … Foulkes, W. D. (2016). The influence of clinical and genetic factors on patient outcome in small cell carcinoma of the ovary, hypercalcemic type. Gynecologic Oncology, 141, 454-460. doi: 10.1016/j.ygyno.2016.03.013

Journal - Research Article

Barrett, M. T., Anderson, K. S., Lenkiewicz, E., Andreozzi, M., Cunliffe, H. E., Klassen, C. L., … Pockaj, B. A. (2015). Genomic amplification of 9p24.1 targeting JAK2, PD-L1, and PD-L2 is enriched in high-risk triple negative breast cancer. Oncotarget, 6(28). doi: 10.18632/oncotarget.4494

Journal - Research Article

Fan, P., Cunliffe, H. E., Maximov, P. Y., Agboke, F. A., McDaniel, R. E., Zou, X., … Jordan, V. C. (2015). Integration of downstream signals of insulin-like growth factor-1 receptor by endoplasmic reticulum stress for estrogen-induced growth or apoptosis in breast cancer cells. Molecular Cancer Research, 13(10), 1367-1376. doi: 10.1158/1541-7786.mcr-14-0494

Journal - Research Article

Necela, B. M., Crozier, J. A., Andorfer, C. A., Lewis-Tuffin, L., Kachergus, J. M., Geiger, X. J., … Cunliffe, H. E., … Perez, E. A. (2015). Folate receptor-α (FOLR1) expression and function in triple negative tumors. PLoS ONE, 10(3), e0122209. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0122209

Journal - Research Article

Fan, P., Agboke, F. A., Cunliffe, H. E., Ramos, P., & Jordan, V. C. (2014). A molecular model for the mechanism of acquired tamoxifen resistance in breast cancer. European Journal of Cancer, 50(16), 2866-2876. doi: 10.1016/j.ejca.2014.08.011

Journal - Research Article

Fan, P., Cunliffe, H. E., Griffith, O. L., Agboke, F. A., Ramos, P., Gray, J. W., & Jordan, V. C. (2014). Identification of gene regulation patterns underlying both oestrogen- and tamoxifen-stimulated cell growth through global gene expression profiling in breast cancer cells. European Journal of Cancer, 50(16), 2877-2886. doi: 10.1016/j.ejca.2014.08.010

Journal - Research Article

McGhan, L. J., McCullough, A. E., Protheroe, C. A., Dueck, A. C., Lee, J. J., Nunez-Nateras, R., … Cunliffe, H. E., & Pockaj, B. A. (2014). Androgen receptor-positive triple negative breast cancer: A unique breast cancer subtype. Annals of Surgical Oncology, 21, 361-367. doi: 10.1245/s10434-013-3260-7

Journal - Research Article

Ramos, P., Karnezis, A. N., Craig, D. W., Sekulic, A., Russell, M. L., Hendricks, W. P. D., … Cunliffe, H. E., … Trent, J. M. (2014). Small cell carcinoma of the ovary, hypercalcemic type, displays frequent inactivating germline and somatic mutations in SMARCA4. Nature Genetics, 46(5), 427-429. doi: 10.1038/ng.2928

Journal - Research Article

Ramos, P., Karnezis, A. N., Hendricks, W. P. D., Wang, Y., Tembe, W., Zismann, V. L., … Cunliffe, H. E., … Trent, J. M. (2014). Loss of the tumor suppressor SMARCA4 in small cell carcinoma of the ovary, hypercalcemic type (SCCOHT). Rare Diseases, 2(1), e967148. doi: 10.4161/2167549X.2014.967148

Journal - Research Article

Reese, J. M., Suman, V. J., Subramaniam, M., Wu, X., Negron, V., Gingery, A., … Cunliffe, H. E., … Hawse, J. R. (2014). ERβ1: Characterization, prognosis, and evaluation of treatment strategies in ERα-positive and -negative breast cancer. BMC Cancer, 14, 749. doi: 10.1186/1471-2407-14-749

Journal - Research Article

Katchman, B. A., Ocal, I. T., Cunliffe, H. E., Chang, Y.-H., Hostetter, G., Watanabe, A., … Lake, D. F. (2013). Expression of quiescin sulfhydryl oxidase 1 is associated with a highly invasive phenotype and correlates with a poor prognosis in Luminal B breast cancer. Breast Cancer Research, 15, R28. doi: 10.1186/bcr3407

Journal - Research Article

Nokes, B. T., Cunliffe, H. E., LaFleur, B., Mount, D., Livingston, R. B., Futscher, B. W., & Lang, J. E. (2013). In vitro assessment of the inflammatory breast cancer cell line SUM 149: Discovery of 2 single nucleotide polymorphisms in the RNase L Gene. Journal of Cancer, 4(2), 104-116. doi: 10.7150/jca.5002

Journal - Research Article

Rowton, M., Ramos, P., Anderson, D. M., Rhee, J. M., Cunliffe, H. E., & Rawls, A. (2013). Regulation of mesenchymal-to-epithelial transition by PARAXIS during somitogenesis. Developmental Dynamics, 242, 1332-1344.

Journal - Research Article

Asmann, Y. W., Necela, B. M., Kalari, K. R., Hossain, A., Baker, T. R., Carr, J. M., … Cunliffe, H. E., … Thompson, E. A. (2012). Detection of redundant fusion transcripts as biomarkers or disease-specific therapeutic targets in breast cancer. Cancer Research, 72(8), 1921-1928. doi: 10.1158/0008-5472.CAN-11-3142

Journal - Research Article

Cunliffe, H. E., Jiang, Y., Fornace, K. M., Yang, F., & Meltzer, P. S. (2012). PAR6B is required for tight junction formation and activated PKCζ localization in breast cancer. American Journal of Cancer Research, 2(5), 478-491.

Journal - Research Article

Holley, T., Lenkiewicz, E., Evers, L., Tembe, W., Ruiz, C., Gsponer, J. R., … Cunliffe, H. E., … Barrett, M. T. (2012). Deep clonal profiling of formalin fixed paraffin embedded clinical samples. PLoS ONE, 7(1), e50586. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0050586

Journal - Research Article

Kimbung, S., Biskup, E., Johansson, I., Aaltonen, K., Ottosson-Wadlund, A., Gruvberger-Saal, S., Cunliffe, H., … Hedenfalk, I. (2012). Co-targeting of the PI3K pathway improves the response of BRCA1 deficient breast cancer cells to PARP1 inhibition. Cancer Letters, 319, 232-241. doi: 10.1016/j.canlet.2012.01.015

Journal - Research Article

Ariazi, E. A., Cunliffe, H. E., Lewis-Wambi, J. S., Slifker, M. J., Willis, A. L., Ramos, P., … Jordan, V. C. (2011). Estrogen induces apoptosis in estrogen deprivation-resistant breast cancer through stress responses as identified by global gene expression across time. PNAS, 108(47), 18879-18886. doi: 10.1073/pnas.1115188108

Journal - Research Article

Ariazi, E. A., Brailoiu, E., Yerrum, S., Shupp, H. A., Slifker, M. J., Cunliffe, H. E., Black, M. A., … Jordan, V. C. (2010). The G protein-coupled receptor GPR30 inhibits proliferation of estrogen receptor-positive breast cancer cells. Cancer Research, 70(3), 1184-1194. doi: 10.1158/0008-5472.CAN-09-3068

Journal - Research Article

Rennstam, K., Ringberg, A., Cunliffe, H. E., Olsson, H., Landberg, G., & Hedenfalk, I. (2010). Genomic alterations in histopathologically normal breast tissue from BRCA1 mutation carriers may be caused by BRCA1 haploinsufficiency. Genes Chromosomes & Cancer, 49(1), 78-90. doi: 10.1002/gcc.20723

Journal - Research Article

Lewis-Wambi, J. S., Cunliffe, H. E., Kim, H. R., Willis, A. L., & Jordan, V. C. (2008). Overexpression of CEACAM6 promotes migration and invasion of oestrogen-deprived breast cancer cells. European Journal of Cancer, 44(12), 1770-1779. doi: 10.1016/j.ejca.2008.05.016

Journal - Research Article

Willis, A. L., Tran, N. L., Chatigny, J. M., Charlton, N., Vu, H., Brown, S. A. N., Black, M. A., … Cunliffe, H. E. (2008). The fibroblast growth factor-inducible 14 receptor is highly expressed in HER2-positive breast tumors and regulates breast cancer cell invasive capacity. Molecular Cancer Research, 6(5), 725-734. doi: 10.1158/1541-7786.MCR-08-0005

Journal - Research Article

Winkles, J. A., Tran, N. L., Brown, S. A. N., Stains, N., Cunliffe, H. E., & Berens, M. E. (2007). Role of TWEAK and Fn14 in tumor biology. Frontiers in Bioscience, 12, 2761-2771.

Journal - Research Article

Gruvberger-Saal, S. K., Cunliffe, H. E., Carr, K. M., & Hedenfalk, I. A. (2006). Microarrays in breast cancer research and clinical practice: The future lies ahead. Endocrine-Related Cancer, 13(4), 1017-1031. doi: 10.1677/erc.1.01246

Journal - Research Article

Tran, N. L., McDonough, W. S., Savitch, B. A., Fortin, S. P., Winkles, J. A., Symons, M., … Cunliffe, H. E., … Berens, M. E. (2006). Increased fibroblast growth factor-inducible 14 expression levels promote glioma cell invasion via Rac1 and nuclear factor-κB and correlate with poor patient outcome. Cancer Research, 66(19), 9535-9542. doi: 10.1158/0008-5472.CAN-06-0418

Journal - Research Article

Cunliffe, H. E., Ringnér, M., Bilke, S., Walker, R. L., Cheung, J. M., Chen, Y., & Meltzer, P. S. (2003). The gene expression response of breast cancer to growth regulators: Patterns and correlation with tumor expression profiles. Cancer Research, 63(21), 7158-7166.

Journal - Research Article

Azorsa, D. O., Cunliffe, H. E., & Meltzer, P. S. (2001). Association of steroid receptor coactivator AIB1 with estrogen receptor-α in breast cancer cells. Breast Cancer Research & Treatment, 70, 89-101. doi: 10.1023/A:1012972808558

Journal - Research Article

Scherr, M., LeBon, J., Castanotto, D., Cunliffe, H. E., Meltzer, P. S., Ganser, A., … Rossi, J. J. (2001). Detection of antisense and ribozyme accessible sites on native mRNAs: Application to NCOA3 mRNA. Molecular Therapy, 4(5), 454-460. doi: 10.1006/mthe.2001.0481

Journal - Research Article

Wilderman, P. J., Vasil, A. I., Johnson, Z., Wilson, M. J., Cunliffe, H. E., Lamont, I. L., & Vasil, M. L. (2001). Characterization of an endoprotease (PrpL) encoded by a PvdS-regulated gene in Pseudomonas aeruginosa. Infection & Immunity, 69(9), 5385-5394.

Journal - Research Article

Porteous, S., Torban, E., Cho, N.-P., Cunliffe, H. E., Chua, L. J., McNoe, L. A., Ward, T. A., … Yun, K., … Eccles, M. R. (2000). Primary renal hypoplasia in humans and mice with PAX2 mutations: Evidence of increased apoptosis in fetal kidneys of PAX2(1NEU)+/-mutant mice. Human Molecular Genetics, 9(1), 1-11.

Journal - Research Article

Cunliffe, H. E., McNoe, L. A., Ward, T. A., Devriendt, K., Brunner, H. G., & Eccles, M. R. (1998). The prevalence of PAX2 mutations in patients with isolated colobomas or colobomas associated with urogenital anomalies. Journal of Medical Genetics, 35(10), 806-812.

Journal - Research Article

Stayner, C. K., Cunliffe, H. E., Ward, T. A., & Eccles, M. R. (1998). Cloning and characterization of the human PAX2 promoter. Journal of Biological Chemistry, 273(39), 25472-25479.

Journal - Research Article

McConnell, M. J., Cunliffe, H. E., Chua, L. J., Ward, T. A., & Eccles, M. R. (1997). Differential regulation of the human Wilms-tumour suppressor gene (WT1) promoter by two isoforms of PAX2. Oncogene, 14(22), 2689-2700. doi: 10.1038/sj.onc.1201114

Journal - Research Article

Schimmenti, L. A., Cunliffe, H. E., McNoe, L. A., Ward, T. A., French, M., Shim, H. H., … Eccles, M. R. (1997). Further delineation of renal-coloboma syndrome in patients with extreme variability of phenotype and identical PAX2 mutations. American Journal of Human Genetics, 60(4), 869-878.

Journal - Research Article

Ochsner, O. A., Johnson, Z., Lamont, I. L., Cunliffe, H. E., & Vasil, M. L. (1996). Exotoxin A production in Pseudomonas aeruginosa requires the iron-regulated pvdS gene encoding an alternative sigma factor. Molecular Microbiology, 21(5), 1019-1028. doi: 10.1046/j.1365-2958.1996.481425.x

Journal - Research Article

Cunliffe, H. E., Merriman, T. R., & Lamont, I. L. (1995). Cloning and characterization of pvdS, a gene required for pyoverdine synthesis in Pseudomonas aeruginosa: PvdS is probably an alternative sigma factor. Journal of Bacteriology, 177(10), 2744-2750. doi: 10.1128/jb.177.10.2744-2750.1995

Journal - Research Article

Ratajska, M., Sette, C., & Cunliffe, H. E. (2023). 365 days of progress in cancer genetics. Frontiers in Oncology, 13. doi: 10.3389/fonc.2023.1270902

Journal - Research Other

Naro, C., Cunliffe, H. E., & Sette, C. (2022). Insight in cancer genetics: 2022. Frontiers in Oncology, 12, 988310. doi: 10.3389/fonc.2022.988310

Journal - Research Other

Jordan, V. C., Ariazi, E. A., Lewis-Wambi, J. S., Swaby, R. R., Cunliffe, H. E., Riegel, A. T., & Wellstein, A. (2007). Oestrogen is bad for patients with breast cancer? [Short communication]. Breast Cancer Research, 9(Suppl. 2), S22.

Journal - Research Other

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