5th Translational Genomics & Epigenomics Symposium
September 18 & 19, 2025
2025 Keynote Speakers
The Elemento lab combines Big Data analytics with experimentation to develop entirely new ways to help prevent, diagnose, understand, treat and ultimately cure cancer. Our research involves routine use of ultrafast DNA sequencing, proteomics, high-performance computing, mathematical modeling, and artificial intelligence/machine learning.
Our research focuses on regulation of the nuclear genome in mammals and model organisms. The long strands of nuclear DNA are associated with packaging proteins, called histones, into a structure known as chromatin, akin to the way thread is organized around a spool. We are particularly interested in changes in this chromatin structure via chemical modification of the histone proteins, and how attachment of certain chemical groups onto the histones leads to altered chromatin function. These targeted structural changes are conceptually like the unraveling of the thread to reach specific, buried sections. We are also fascinated by functional changes in chromatin, caused by these histone modifications, that persist through cell division from one cell into two daughter cells; these persistent, or epigenetic, changes are of particular interest because they are key to normal and abnormal growth: they occur during organismal development into multicellular tissues and organs, and are typically disrupted during abnormal reversal of tissue specialization and growth control as in cancer, as well as during aging of cells and individuals.
We utilize computational and experimental methodologies to identify and characterize the essential genetic elements that guide the function of the human genome, with a particular emphasis on the elements that orchestrate the development of the human brain. Our lab creates detailed cell-specific molecular maps of genetic, epigenetic, transcriptional, and translational activity, creating a draft of the molecular recipe for the creation of the brain. We also develop methods to detect, catalog and functionally annotate variants in the genetic pathways that control developmental processes and how they are perturbed to create disease. We aim to understand of the functional elements of the human genome well enough to enable, eventually, the ability to repair, re-engineer, or fortify these genetic networks within human cells.
The goal of our research program is to exploit the emerging information on dysregulated signaling circuitries and individual genomic and molecular alterations to identify new therapeutic options to prevent and treat cancer. Our laboratory has focused on the study of the oncogenic activity of G proteins and G protein coupled receptors (GPCRs), including virallyencoded GPCRs, to dissect the signaling pathways regulating normal and aberrant cell growth, tumor-induced angiogenesis, and metastasis. We are now investigating the mechanisms by which genetic mutations in Gαq proteins initiate uveal and cutaneous melanoma, the role of Gαs and its target, PKA, in cancer, and how mutations and autocrine activation of GPCRs contribute to tumor progression, immune evasion, and therapy resistance. In parallel, we are exploring the role of the mTOR pathway in cancers of the oral cavity, a disease that results in 250,000 deaths each year worldwide. Based on our prior studies, and emerging results from our recently completed multi-institutional clinical trial targeting mTOR in oral cancer, we are now investigating the effectiveness and mechanism of action of PI3K/mTOR inhibitors for oral cancer prevention and treatment, as single agents and as part of novel multimodal immunotherapies.