We are analyzing genes involved in causing precancerous metaplasias in the stomach. Some of these genes may be involved in the progression to gastric cancer from the metaplasias. In the lab here at Wash U we are identifying and characterizing genes in our mouse models of metaplasia. Our Chinese colleagues are analyzing expression of those genes in banks of paired normal-tumor tissue samples and mRNA samples. We are hosting a visiting assistant professor from China in the lab here at Wash U for training, and a graduate student will be hosted for a month in China to learn their approach to labwork and teach ours. As our Chinese collaborators see very large volumes of gastric cancer, they have large databases of tissue and can also potentially convert what we learn into new techniques for screening/detection.