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Pertsemlidis Lab

Dr. Pertsemlidis and staff

Alexander Pertsemlidis, PhD

Rank: Professor
Department: Pediatrics
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.
Alexander Pertsemlidis, PhD, UT Health San Antonio Faculty Profile

Lab Research