Alexander Strunnikov

Biography

Dr. Alex Strunnikov is a world-known researcher in the field of chromosome biology and chromatin. He moved to China from the US as a State Specially Recruited Expert (1000 Talents Plan) and established the Molecular Epigenetics Laboratory (MEL) at GIBH in 2012. Dr. Strunnikov discovered the SMC (Structural Maintenance of Chromosomes) family of chromosomal proteins and made seminal contributions into other areas of chromatin research that have a direct relevance to cancer biology. These areas included: sister chromatin cohesion (cohesin complexes), mitotic chromosome condensation (condensin complex), centromere structure and function in yeast and human cells, mitotic segregation of nucleolar organizer/rDNA, regulation of chromatin functions by CDC14 and posttranslational modifications with SUMO, and genomics of chromosomal damage undetectable by checkpoints. In the recent years, the advance of cancer genomics and its introduction into the practical healthcare has brought a boom in the new generation of drugs specifically targeting driver mutations in tumor-associated genes. However, sequencing of genomes of post-treatment relapse tumors strongly indicates that tumor driver mutations, which are targeted by most designer anticancer drugs, are late occurrences in tumor development. Furthermore, in-depth analyses of the growing number of cancer genomes also indicated that early events in tumorigenesis, such as epigenetic deregulation or chromothrypsis, represent universal molecular changes in all tumors. These changes in the epigenetic and genetic makeup of cancer cell provide a promising direction of research into universal therapeutic targets in cancers and into the causes of tumor relapses after currently available treatments. Honors and awards   2016: “Chief Foreign Expert” Award, SAFEA China 2014: “Guangdong High Talent” Award, Guangdong Province, China 2012: “1000 Talents, State Specially Recruited Expert” Award, Government of China 2006: “Ten Years in Service to the Government of the United States of America” 2001: “Certificate of Recognition for Mentoring” from Howard Hughes Medical Institute 1999: “The NIH Director’s Series” Named Speaker  

Research Interest

New biomarkers for cancers    There are two main directions that are currently pursued at MEL with respect to biomarkers. The first focus area is on high-throughput approach to testing for cancer-testis antigens (CTAs). Second, MEL is developing a robust and time-efficient platform to test both genome an epigenome landmarks of different tumors in a high-throughput fashion.   Discovery of anticancer drug targets    Understanding the whole spectrum of deregulation of epigenetic controls in cancer is not possible without understanding the multifunctional nature of CTCF and its interacting factors. Targeting CTCF malfunction and CTCFL/BORIS activation in cancer using the toolbox of medicinal chemistry is the primary strategic goal of MEL. MEL is also engaged in assay development and in the validation of novel potential therapeutic targets among chromatin proteins.   Molecular mechanisms of cancer onset       MEL is also engaged in the research on pathway discovery in the epigenomics of chromosome instability in cancer. Massive breakage and rearrangement of chromosomes is one of the earliest events in cancer development, and MEL has established techniques to map chromosome breakpoints that are characteristic for a disruption of specific pathways controlling chromosome integrity, such as CIN genes as well as CT genes with a chromosome instability phenotype. The experimental modeling of these events characteristic for early oncogenesis aims to generate a compendium of chromosome instability patterns in human cancers.