February 2022

The 2022 Cancer Specialty Report highlights the latest discoveries and work of TCI’s investigators that advance better treatments and health.

Read the Full Report

Thomas Marron, MD, PhD; Miriam Merad, MD, PhD; and colleagues

The Lancet, Gastroenterology & Hepatology. 2022 Jan 19. PMID: 35065058

Brian Brown, PhD, was appointed Director for the Icahn Genomics Institute at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai. He is Professor of Genetics and Genomic Sciences and Associate Director of the Precision Immunology Institute at Icahn Mount Sinai. Dr. Brown has invented new ways to target vectors and viruses to particular cell types and tissues that are being evaluated in the clinic for cancer treatments. His current research focuses on identifying the molecular and cellular factors that control tumor immunity and developing therapeutic strategies to direct the immune system to eliminate cancer.

Augusto Villanueva, MD, PhD, was promoted to Associate Professor. Dr. Villanueva’s laboratory conducts research on the development and clinical implementation of minimally-invasive biomarkers of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) including liquid biopsy for early HCC detection and prediction of treatment response. 

Cansu Cimen-Bozkus, PhD, was appointed to the faculty at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai as Assistant Professor. The focus of her research, in the laboratory of Nina Bhardwaj, MD, PhD, is the characterization of antitumor T cell immunity and the immunosuppressive mechanisms that might limit the efficacy of T cell-based cancer immunotherapies in myeloproliferative neoplasms, glioblastoma and microsatellite instability-high cancers.

The TCI Flow Cytometry Shared Resource Facility (FCSRF) provides access to state-of-the-art technologies, services, and expertise in flow cytometry to enhance scientific discovery, interaction, and productivity underlying innovative cancer research programs. The FCSRF is directed by Jordi Ochando, PhD; Christopher Bare serves as Laboratory Operations Manager.

During 2021, the FCSRF experienced substantial growth in services and staff, including:

TCI members benefit from discounted pricing.

For further information, visit the FSCSF site or contact Jerry Chipuk, PhD, Associate Director of Basic Science Shared Resources at TCI.

Jose Javier Bravo-Cordero, PhD, received a 2022 Irma T. Hirschl/Monique Weill-Caulier Scientist Award for his cancer neuroscience research in collaboration with Deanna Benson, PhD.

Research Grant RFPs:

Mrittika Chattopadhyay, PhD, et al.

Cell Reports. 2022 Jan 18. PMID: 35045282

A study from the lab of Doris Germain, PhD, in collaboration with the Guccione, Lujambio and Sia labs, reveals that mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) of the normal liver shapes tumor progression, histology, and immune environment prior to the acquisition of oncogenic mutation. Using conplastic mice, the researchers show that mtDNA dictates the expression of the mitochondrial unfolded protein response (UPR^mt) in the normal liver, and that activation of oncogenic mutations in UPR^mt-positive liver increases tumor incidence and histological heterogeneity. Additionally, findings of gender disparity in the mouse model demonstrate that not only mitochondrial genetics but also sex impact liver cancer outcome—this is significant since gender disparity is observed in liver cancer in humans and remains poorly understood.

Eirini Papapetrou, MD, PhD, and colleagues

Blood Advances. 2022 Jan 18. PMID: 35042235

SF3B1^K700E is the most frequent mutation in myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS), but the mechanisms by which it drives MDS pathogenesis are unclear. Based on a panel of 18 genetically matched SF3B1^K700E and SF3B1^WT induced pluripotent stem cell lines from patients with MDS with ring sideroblasts (MDS-RS) harboring isolated SF3B1^K700E mutations, this study provides a comprehensive characterization of the transcriptional and chromatin landscape of SF3B1^K700E HSPCs and nominates novel mis-spliced genes and transcriptional programs with putative roles in MDS-RS disease biology.

Christian Rolfo, MD, PhD, and colleagues

Updated integrated analysis of the efficacy and safety of entrectinib in patients with NTRK fusion-positive solid tumors

Clinical Cancer Research. 2022 Feb 10. PMID: 35144967

This manuscript, expanding prior reports with additional patients and longer follow-up, reports that entrectinib continues to demonstrate durable systemic and intracranial responses, and can address the unmet need of a central nervous system-active treatment in patients with NTRK fusion-positive solid tumors.

Darren Pan, MD; Ajai Chari, MD; and colleagues

Cancer Medicine. 2022 Jan.

Uroosa Ibrahim, MD; Alla Keyzner, MD

Daratumumab for donor-specific anti-HLA antibody desensitization in a case of HLA-mismatched allogeneic stem cell transplantation

Hematology, Transfusion and Cell Therapy. 2022 Jan 25.

PMID: 35105529

Xufen Yu, PhD; Xia Ju, PhD; Kaitlyn Cahuzac, PhD; Kwang-Su Park, PhD; Brandon Dale; Jing Liu, PhD; Ramon Parsons, MD, PhD; Jian Jin, PhD

Journal of Medicinal Chemistry. 2022 Feb 4. PMID: 35119851

Dr. Jin, Dr. Parsons, and team recently reported a potent, selective, and in vivo efficacious AKT degrader, MS21, which is a von Hippel-Lindau (VHL)-recruiting proteolysis targeting chimera (PROTAC) based on the AKT inhibitor AZD5363. The team now reports on structure-activity relationship studies that led to the discovery of MS21, another VHL-recruiting AKT degrader, MS143 (compound 20) with similar potency as MS21, and a novel cereblon (CRBN)-recruiting PROTAC, MS5033 (compound 35). 

Josep Llovet, MD, will co-chair “Advances in the Pathogenesis and Molecular Therapies of Liver Cancer,” an inaugural conference of the American Association for Cancer Research, May 5-8, 2022, in Boston. For more information and to register: AACR.org/Liver22

The Mount Sinai Liver Cancer Program hosted its sixteenth annual Liver Cancer Conference on December 17. The virtual event attracted 263 attendees, up from 150-200 attendees at previous in-person conferences. Josep Llovet, MD, PhD, served as Program Director for the conference. Amit Singal, MD, Medical Director of the Liver Tumor Program and Clinical Chief of Hepatology at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, delivered the Hans Popper Lecture: Epidemiology and early detection of HCC.

Thursday, February 24, 8:30 am

Director, Thoracic Oncology Biorepository, Johns Hopkins Medicine

Information about Shared Resources Cores in Development has been added to the TCI website:

Colon Cancer Awareness and Screening

Presenters: Krystal P. Cascetta, MD, and Sanghyun A. Kim, MD

  TCI Connections  is a monthly publication of The Tisch Cancer Institute

Past issues of  TCI Connections  are available on the TCI website