Sandeep Burma

Biography

Dr. Sandeep Burma obtained his Ph.D. in Molecular Biology from the National Institute of Immunology, New Delhi, India in 1995. After postdoctoral training at Yale University, Pennsylvania State University and Los Alamos National Laboratory, he joined the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory as a Scientist Biologist in 1999. He joined the UT Southwestern Medical Center in 2005 where he is currently Associate Professor of Radiation Oncology. Dr. Burma is member of the Harold C. Simmons Comprehensive Cancer center and the Cancer Biology and Genetics, Development & Disease graduate programs of UT Southwestern. Research in the Burma laboratory is focused on the responses of mammalian cells to DNA double-strand breaks (DSBs), collectively called the DNA damage response (DDR). These responses are of paramount importance in the field of cancer biology - on one hand, DSBs cause cancer, while, on the other hand, these breaks are induced by ionizing radiation or chemotherapies commonly used to treat the disease. The Burma lab is involved in studying DDR events triggered by ionizing radiation and their carcinogenic and cancer therapeutic implications.

Research Interest

DNA double-strand breaks - sensing, signaling and repair Glioblastoma radioresistance - genetic basis and therapeutic targeting Radiation-induced gliomagenesis - genetic events underlying transformation