The Basic Science Program (BSP) provides scientific and technical expertise to NCI's Center for Cancer Research (CCR) related to cancer and other diseases, and to develop cutting-edge tools to accelerate progress. Areas of focus include cancer, retrovirology, basic biology, structural biology, informatics, cellular mechanisms, and the genetic factors that influence disease susceptibility and progression. There are 13 CCR research programs supported by the BSP: 1) Basic Research Laboratory - research on the cellular, molecular, genetic, biochemical, and immunological mechanisms affecting the progression, diagnosis, and treatment of cancer; 2) Cancer and Inflammation Program - studies focus on how innate resistance and adaptive immunity participate in oncogenesis and tumor surveillance; 3) Chemical Biology Laboratory - discovery of new small molecules, peptides, macromolecules, arrays and materials that impact cancer and AIDS diagnostics and treatment; 4) RNA Biology Laboratory - uses a variety of organisms to investigate chromosome dynamics and regulation; 5) HIV Dynamics and Replication Program - studies in structural biology, biochemistry, virology, virus-host interaction, evolution, and in vivo virus biology to better understand mechanisms of retroviral replication; 6) Macromolecular Crystallography Laboratory - investigates systems and techniques relevant to macromolecular crystallography and its applications; 7) Molecular Targets Program - an interdisciplinary, collaborative, team-oriented approach to identifying and validating potential cancer-pertinent targets; 8) Mouse Cancer Genetics Program - uses molecular mouse genetics as a primary tool to better understand the fundamental processes underlying mammalian development and disease; 9) Structural Biophysics Laboratory - solution structural biology and biophysics aimed at understanding and regulating the mechanism of action of proteins and nucleic acids; 10) Urologic Oncology Branch - discovery and characterization of renal carcinoma susceptibility genes; 11) Genetics Branch - molecular profile of a given biospecimen; 12) Vaccine Branch - elucidate basic mechanisms of immune response and molecular virology and 13) Experimental Transplantation and Immunology Branch - basic, preclinical and clinical investigations in the areas of immunotherapy, immune reconstitution, T cell biology, hematopoiesis, and hematopoietic stem cell transplantation.
