Stjepan Uldrijan

• Mission: We want to understand the mechanisms enabling tumor cell growth and survival under stress conditions and the emergence of melanoma resistance to targeted treatment.
• Vision: We will find new targeted therapy options for melanoma patients whose tumors are resistant to BRAF and MEK kinase inhibitors.

Our research group studies molecular mechanisms responsible for cancer cell growth and survival under stress conditions, including their response to modern targeted therapies. We focus on the molecular biology of malignant melanoma, specifically on the mechanisms regulating the RAS/RAF/MEK/ERK signaling pathway, whose overactivation, induced by mutations in the NRAS and BRAF oncogenes, promotes aggressive melanoma growth. Clinically used inhibitors of BRAF and MEK kinases can significantly reduce the ERK pathway activity and thus slow melanoma progression, but patients often develop resistance to treatment. We aim for a more profound comprehension of the ERK pathway regulation and resistance development at the molecular level. This could help identify new and more effective targeted treatment options for this disease.