Science Reports: Sex-dependent differences in the genomic profile of lingual sensory neurons in naïve and tongue-tumor bearing mice (Chen, Lai)

August 14, 2023

Tarek Ibrahim, Ping Wu, Li-Ju Wang, Chang Fang-Mei, Josue Murillo, Jaclyn Merlo, Sergey S. Shein, Alexei V. Tumanov, Zhao Lai, Korri Weldon, Yidong Chen & Shivani Ruparel Abstract Mechanisms of sex-dependent orofacial pain are widely understudied. A significant gap in knowledge exists about the comprehensive regulation of tissue-specific trigeminal sensory neurons in diseased states of both [...]

2023 Spatial Transcriptome Pilot Projects

February 6, 2023

Overview The Greehey Children’s Cancer Research Institute, Genomic Sequencing Facility, expects to support four Spatial Transcriptome pilot projects (two human and two mouse Visium slides, one per proposal). It is crucial to identify pilot grants that will enhance future success in obtaining extramural funding and/or peer-reviewed publications. The Genome Sequencing Facility Spatial Transcriptome Pilot Program received [...]

Cancers: Inhibition of LIFR Blocks Adiposity-Driven Endometrioid Endometrial Cancer Growth (Chen, Lai, Zheng)

November 15, 2022

by  Logan Blankenship Uday P. Pratap Xue Yang Zexuan Liu Kristin A. Altwegg Bindu Santhamma Kumaraguruparan Ramasamy Swapna Konda Yidong Chen Zhao Lai Siyuan Zheng Gangadhara R. Sareddy Philip T. Valente Edward R. Kost Hareesh B. Nair Rajeshwar R. Tekmal Ratna K. Vadlamudi and Suryavathi Viswanadhapalli Simple Summary In this study, we utilized global RNA-seq [...]

Hepatology: Melanoma Differentiation Associated Gene-9/Syndecan Binding Protein (MDA-9/SDCBP) Promotes Hepatocellular Carcinoma (HCC) [Lai]

September 22, 2022

Debashri Manna,Saranya Chidambaranathan Reghupaty,Maria Del Carmen Camarena,Rachel G. Mendoza,Mark A. Subler,Jennifer E. Koblinski,Rebecca Martin,Mikhail G. Dozmorov,Nitai D. Mukhopadhyay,Jinze Liu,Xufeng Qu,Swadesh K. Das,Zhao Lai,Jolene J. Windle,Paul B. Fisher,Devanand Sarkar Abstract The oncogene Melanoma differentiation-associated gene-9/syndecan binding protein (MDA-9/SDCBP) is overexpressed in many cancers promoting aggressive, metastatic disease. However, the role of MDA-9 in regulating hepatocellular carcinoma [...]

Dr. Zhao Lai to Receive NCI R50 Funding

August 24, 2022

The National Cancer Institute (NCI) has recently awarded an R50 Research Specialist Award to Dr. Zhao Lai, Associate Professor/Research, Director of the Next-Generation Sequencing Shared Resource (NGSSR) in the NCI-designated Mays Cancer Center (MCC). This award, over five years, supports the development of a stable research career for Dr. Lai, an exceptional scientist who will [...]

International Journal of Molecular Sciences: Therapeutic Targeting of Ovarian Cancer Stem Cells Using Estrogen Receptor Beta Agonist (Lai)

July 12, 2022

Yi He 1,2, Salvador  Alejo 1, Prabhakar Pitta Venkata 1, Jessica D. Johnson 1, Ilanna Loeffel 1, Uday P. Pratap 1, Yi Zou 3, Zhao Lai 3, Rajeshwar R. Tekmal 1,4, Edward R. Kost 1 and Gangadhara R. Sareddy 1,4,* Abstract Ovarian cancer (OCa) is the deadliest gynecologic cancer. Emerging studies suggest ovarian cancer stem [...]

ASM Journals: GRWD1-WDR5-MLL2 Epigenetic Complex Mediates H3K4me3 Mark and Is Essential for Kaposi’s Sarcoma-Associated Herpesvirus-Induced Cellular Transformation (Lai)

January 5, 2022

Shan Wei, Songjian Lu, Lifan Liang, Xian Wang, Wan Li, Tingting Li, Luping Chen, , Enguo Ju, Xinquan Zhang, Zhao Lai, Yufei Huang, Xinghua Lu, Shou-Jiang Gao  ABSTRACT Infection by Kaposi’s sarcoma-associated herpesvirus (KSHV) is causally associated with numerous cancers. The mechanism of KSHV-induced oncogenesis remains unclear. By performing a CRISPR-Cas9 screening in a model of KSHV-induced cellular transformation of primary cells, we identified epigenetic regulators that were essential for KSHV-induced cellular transformation. Examination of TCGA data sets of the [...]

MSN: Using Next Generation Sequencing, the Greehey CCRI bioinformatics team is helping determine COVID19 strains (Chen, Lai, Zheng, Wang Labs)

December 17, 2021

"Since the coronavirus pandemic began almost two years ago there have been over a dozen strains of the virus. Here at UT Health San Antonio, they have a lab which differentiates between each of the strains in an effort to save lives. UT Health San Antonio uses a technology called next-generation sequencing to differentiate the [...]

Hepatology Communications: Dissecting the Balance Between Metabolic and Oncogenic Functions of Astrocyte-Elevated Gene-1/Metadherin (Lai Lab)

November 9, 2021

Yetirajam Rajesh, Saranya Chidambaranathan Reghupaty, Rachel G. Mendoza, Debashri Manna, Indranil Banerjee, Mark A. Subler, Korri Weldon, Zhao Lai, Shah Giashuddin, Paul B. Fisher, Arun J. Sanyal, Rebecca K. Martin, Mikhail G. Dozmorov, Jolene J. Windle, Devanand Sarkar   Abstract Obesity is an enormous global health problem, and obesity-induced nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) is contributing to [...]

Cancer Letters: KDM1A inhibition augments the efficacy of rapamycin for the treatment of endometrial cancer (Lai & Chen Labs)

October 28, 2021

Prabhakar PittaVenkataa1 YihongChenab1 SalvadorAlejoa YiHeab Bridgitte E.Palaciosa IlannaLoeffela JunhaoLiuacUday P.Pratapa GabrielleGraya Sureshkumar MulampurathAchuthan Pillaia YiZoud ZhaoLaideT akayoshiSuzukif SuryavathiViswanadhapallia SrinathPalakurthig Rajeshwar R.Tekmalah Ratna K.Vadlamudiahi EdwardKosta Gangadhara R.Sareddyah Highlights • From the drug screen, we found that KDM1A inhibition is highly synergistic with mTOR inhibitors. • KDM1A inhibition attenuated the mTOR signaling cascade and abolished rapamycin-induced feedback [...]