Gray School of Medical Sciences Gray Faculty of Medical & Health Sciences Tel Aviv University | CBRC Cancer Biology Research Center

Guest Seminar

Hosted by: Dr. Inbal Wortzel, Dept. of Cancer Biology & Immunology, Gray Faculty of Medical & Health Sciences

Prof. David Lyden Stavros S. Niarchos Chair, Departments of Pediatrics and Developmental Biology Meyer Cancer Center, Weill Cornell Medicine

Tumor extracellular vesicles and particles promote metastasis and multi-organ disease

Tuesday, February 10th, 2026

Dr. Lyden completed his M.D. at Brown University, his Ph.D. at the University of Vermont, residency at Duke University, and postdoctoral fellowship at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center. He is currently the Stavros S. Niarchos Professor of Pediatrics and Cell and Developmental Biology at Weill Cornell Medicine. He defined the concept of the “pre-metastatic niche” (PMN), demonstrating that tumor-secreted factors recruit bone marrow-derived progenitor cells to distant organs to establish a platform for metastasis. His work showed that tumor-derived extracellular vesicle (EV)-mediated crosstalk initiates PMN formation and coordinates metastatic progression. He identified key proteins and nucleic acids, specifically double stranded DNA, in EVs and demonstrated their systemic role in thrombosis, fatty liver metabolic dysfunction, and immune dysregulation. He defined tumor EV integrins in organotropic metastasis, partially addressing Paget’s “seed and soil” hypothesis, and discovered exomeres, particles packaging distinct proteins, metabolic enzymes, lipids, and glycans. He also identified EV biomarkers for cancer diagnosis and prognosis. Dr. Lyden is an elected member of the Association of American Physicians and Fellow of the AAAS, and recipient of multiple prestigious international awards.

11:00 Gray Faculty of Medical and Health Sciences, Hall 201

Light refreshments will be served from 10:45