Author: Department of Surgery

Dr. Jia has been awarded by the National Institutes of Health and the National Cancer Institute for his study, “MMS22L loss and PARP inhibition in prostate cancer.”

One of the major barriers to effective treatment using PARP inhibitor is how to select patients who most likely benefit from PARP inhibition. In this project, we will determine whether loss of MMS22L can predict response to PARP inhibitor in prostate cancer.

Li Jia, PhD
Director of Urology Research, Division of Urology, Brigham and Women’s Hospital
Assistant Professor of Surgery, Harvard Medical School

Dr. Jia’s expertise lies in linking basic molecular biology with translational medicine. During the past 16 years, the major focus of his research has been on determining the molecular mechanisms of prostate cancer development and progression. Much effort has been devoted to understanding epigenetic mechanisms of androgen receptor-mediated transcription in prostate cancer. Using high-throughput next-generation sequencing, his lab has investigated dynamic chromatin modifications mediated by androgen receptor binding at a genome-wide level. These genomic analyses have led to the discovery of functional non-coding genetic variants that influence cancer-specific gene transcription. Specifically, his research has determined that prostate cancer risk loci within the chromosomal region 8q24 act as tissue-specific enhancers for the proto-oncogene c-MYC.

Since joining Brigham and Women’s Hospital/Harvard Medical School in 2014, Dr. Jia and his lab continue to focus on androgen receptor signaling and its related pathways (including WNT signaling and DNA repair pathway) that drive prostate cancer growth, metastasis and drug resistance. The goal of his research is to understand how these genes and pathways function under androgen-deprived conditions and identify therapeutic vulnerabilities in castration-resistant prostate cancer when androgen receptor-directed therapies fail.

Dr. Jia holds a Bachelor of Medicine and a PhD in nephrology from Nanjing Medical University in China. He completed postdoctoral training in urology at the University of Southern California, Los Angeles.

Dr. Kibel has been awarded by the National Institutes of Health and the National Cancer Institute for his study, “Polygenic risk stratification combined with mpMRI to identify clinically relevant prostate cancer.”

The premise of this study is that an optimal early detection strategy to identify clinically relevant prostate cancer will involve a two-tiered algorithm that leverages inherited genetic information to determine who is at risk for prostate cancer followed by MRI imaging to determine which of these high-risk patients has clinically relevant disease. We propose to test this premise by implementing a polygenic risk score in men and conducting a prospective trial among 1,500 men with MRI to prove the two-tiered algorithm works. Collaborators include: Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Howard University Cancer Center, The Center for Cancer Research of the NCI, The Division of Cancer Epidemiology and Genetics (DCEG) of the NCI, and the Center for Prostate Disease Research of the Uniformed Services University of Health Sciences (USU), Walter Reed National Military Medical Center (WRNMMC), Murtha Cancer Center Research Program (MCCRP) and Urology Service at WRNMMC.

Adam S. Kibel, MD
Chief, Division of Urology, Brigham and Women’s Hospital
DiNovi Family Distinguished Chair in Urology, Brigham and Women’s Hospital
Elliott Carr Cutler Professor of Surgery in Urology, Harvard Medical School

Dr. Kibel is chief of Urology at Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Dana-Farber Brigham Cancer Center and the inaugural incumbent of the DiNovi Family Distinguished Chair in Urology at Brigham and Women’s Hospital. He received his undergraduate and medical degrees from Cornell University, completed his urology residency at the Harvard Urologic Surgery Residency Program and fellowship training at the Johns Hopkins Brady Urological Institute.

With a practice focused on minimally invasive treatments for urologic cancers, Dr. Kibel has been listed as one of America’s Top Doctors by Castle Connolly and named a top urologist by Boston Magazine. The author of close to 400 peer-reviewed publications, Dr. Kibel’s research focuses on the identification of molecular markers of urologic tumors, adjuvant and neoadjuvant approaches to treatment of aggressive disease, and improved imaging of patients with urologic malignancies. His research has been supported by multiple organizations including the National Cancer Institute, the American Cancer Society, the American College of Surgeons and the American Foundation for Urologic Disease.

Dr. Sinha was awarded for his project, “PHD2 mediated loss of hypoxia signaling limits skeletal muscle regeneration and exercise response in aging.”

The study evaluates the role of the hypoxia signaling pathway in age-related decline in skeletal muscle regeneration and response to exercise.  The goal is to identify drug targets to limit loss of skeletal muscle function in the elderly population.

Indranil Sinha, MD
Director of Research, Division of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery
Associate Professor of Surgery, Harvard Medical School

Dr. Sinha is an associate professor of surgery at Brigham and Women’s Hospital.  He received his bachelor’s degree from the University of California, Berkeley in molecular and cellular biology, and completed his medical degree at the University of Michigan Medical School, followed by a plastic surgery residency from the Harvard Combined Program.  His research focus is the rejuvenation of skeletal muscle function in aging and following traumatic injury.