CYTOTOXICITY AND CELLULAR TARGETS OF NOVEL DIRHODIUM COMPLEXES IN CANCER CELLS

With Drs. Shari and Stephen Dunham, Moravian University (Chemistry)

Since the discovery of cytotoxic activity of cisplatin several decades ago, there has been a renewed interest in the development of other cytotoxic heavy metal complexes, such as rhodium. Our lab has been actively collaborating  with two colleagues from the Dept. of Chemistry at Moravian University. Our collective expertise in inorganic synthesis (Steve Dunham), nucleic acid and protein biochemistry (Shari Dunham), protein biochemistry, and cell biology (A.Thévenin) has allowed us to develop and test dirhodium-containing complexes toxic to cancer cells while involving over ten shared undergraduate research students.

If you are interested in working on this joint project, an undergraduate research position will be available for Summer 2026 in the Thévenin lab.

Shared research students (Moravian University):

Evan Bulett ’26

Brynne Loudenslager ’26

Gwen Kester ’25 (Ph.D. student at Rutgers University)

Sophia Shienvold ’24 (Ph.D. student at the University of Delaware)

Charlotte Reid ’22 (Ph.D. student at Yale University)

Elliott Guido ’22 (Ph.D. student at Northeastern University)

Emily (Saulino) Sabatino ’21 (MD/Ph.D. student at University of Alabama)

Tevo’n Campbell ’21 (M.S. student at Drexel University)

Megan Konrath ’20 (Research and development scientist at Saladax Biomedical, Bethlehem, PA)

Jared Miller ’19 (D.O. – PCOM, 2025; Resident physician, Lehigh Valley Health Network)

Miles Lizak ’19 (M.S. – Universitat Automoma de Barcelona, 2022, Interdisciplinary studies in environmental, economic, and social sustainability)