Research Program: Cancer Discovery Platforms Bridging the Engineering-Biology Continuum
Strategic Theme: Pathways & Mechanisms
Prasanth Kannanganattu’s laboratory has significantly contributed to understanding lncRNA’s role in gene expression. His lab explores the molecular mechanism by which the oncogenic lncRNA, MALAT1, controls alternative splicing (AS) of pre-mRNA and utilizes hypoxia response in breast cancer cells as an experimental model system. The current application builds logically on his prior work, describing the role of lncRNAs in gene regulation and their involvement in cancer. His lab was the first to demonstrate the participation of MALAT1 in AS (alternative splicing) of pre-mRNAs. They have obtained crucial preliminary data showing that MALAT1 co-localizes with the SR family of oncogenic splicing factors (SRSFs) in nuclear speckles, influences the speckle localization and splicing activity of SRSFs, and regulates hypoxia-responsive AS of a large number SRSF target genes, controlling angiogenesis and metastasis in BC cells.
Kannanganattu has extensive research experience in lncRNAs, alternative splicing, and gene regulation in cancer cells. In addition, he has assembled a team of collaborators, such as the CCIL’s Erik Nelson (murine model of breast cancer) and Wawrzyniec Dobrucki (whole animal imaging), to support his research. His laboratory collaborates with each member of this group in several ongoing projects, and they contribute to the generation of preliminary data. He received his MS at the Vector Control Research Center and Ph.D. from the Cytogenetics Laboratory at Banaras Hindu University before completing postdoctoral research at the Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory in New York.