During my graduate studies at the University of Nice, France, I investigated the mechanisms by which germline stem cells differentiate to enter meiosis. During my postdoctoral training at MIT, I studied the retinoblastoma tumor suppressor RB in cell cycle control, senescence, and cancer. Research in my laboratory at Stanford University primarily focuses on the molecular machinery that decides whether a cell divides or not. We use novel genetic tools to understand the basic mechanisms of cancer initiation and progression, and to explore how cells divide. By understanding the molecular basis of how cancers start and progress, we aim to find effective therapeutic targets and therapeutic strategies to prevent and treat cancer, as well as enhance the proliferation of cells for tissue repair. A major area of investigation in the lab is the RB tumor suppressor and the consequences of alterations in the RB function in stem cells and cancer cells. In particular, we investigate how RB loss contributes to the development of neuroendocrine tumors, including small cell lung cancer (SCLC). We use SCLC as a paradigm to address central questions in cancer biology, including cancer stem cells, intra-tumoral heterogeneity, and mechanisms of resistance to therapy.