Alexander Pertsemlidis, PhD
Rank: Professor
Department: Pediatrics, Cell Systems & Anatomy
Office: 3.100.22
Tel: 210-562-9062
pertsemlidis@uthscsa.edu
Our research interests integrate computational biology, cancer biology, and genetics. We are studying regulatory RNA molecules called non-coding RNAs (called that because they do not code for proteins), including microRNAs (miRNAs) and long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs), and how they regulate cancer cell growth and response to anti-cancer drugs.
Our Beliefs:
- nature has already developed elegant but non-obvious solutions to most problems facing modern medicine
- there may be many different solutions to the same problem
- things that look the same at the tissue level may look very different at the molecular level
Our Goals:
- develop sensitive, non-invasive methods for early cancer detection
- identify new drugs targeting specific adult and pediatric cancer subtypes, either directly or in combination with traditional therapeutic agents
Our Projects:
- ncRNA regulation of cell viability and drug response in neuroblastoma
- Trisomy 21 and protection against neuroblastoma
- Therapeutic miRNAs in combination with conventional chemotherapy
- Molecular sensors for detecting cancer at the single-cell level
- Separating tumor and host miRNAs through TU-tagging
- Therapeutic regulation of the PI3K and Wnt signaling pathways
Our Results:
- miRNA, lncRNA, and mRNA expression signatures of cancer cells and normal cells
- interaction networks between miRNAs, lncRNAs, and mRNAs
- ncRNAs and their regulatory targets characterized in vitro, in vivo, and silico
- functional relationships between ncRNAs and disease
- candidate biomarkers, therapeutic targets, and therapeutic agents.