The tumor biology program was the first program to be established in the basic research unit in early 2016. Since then, is has grown in scope and size to encompass two distinct labs with different research themes. Dr. El-Naggar’s lab is focused on examining the role of misfolded proteins in pediatric brain tumors, and the interaction between autophagy and the cellular protein quality control, with particular interest in the role of aggresomes in cancer pathogenesis. As for Dr. Ali’s lab, it is involved in untangling the role of mitochondria in cancer cells, and understanding how it mediates cell death in response to chemotherapeutic interventions.​