Tuesday, June 28, 2022
9:00 am PDT / 12:00 am EDT

B-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia (B-ALL) is the most common pediatric cancer. It consists of over 20 subtypes defined by distinct genetic alterations and gene expression profiles (GEPs), which makes accurate classification of B-ALL subtypes still challenging in clinical practice. Currently, we are analyzing the largest B-ALL cohort around the world to identify multi-omics signatures of each B-ALL subtype and aim to develop a robust B-ALL classification system based on bulk and single-cell RNA-seq. Our goal is to translate the advances in genomics research of B-ALL to precision clinical diagnosis and eventually improve the treatment strategies and outcomes for patients.

Dr. Zhaohui Gu is an assistant professor in the Department of Computational and Quantitative Medicine & Systems Biology at Beckman Research Institute of City of Hope.

Dr. Gu earned his Ph.D. degree in Bioinformatics and Cancer Biology at Shanghai Jiao Tong University. Then he did his postdoctoral training at St. Jude Children‘s Research Hospital. Dr. Gu‘s research has been recognized and supported by the American Society of Hematology (ASH) Scholar Award, The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society (LLS) Special Fellow Award, and NIH/NCI Pathway to Independence Award (K99/R00).

Dr. Gu‘s research examines the genetic basis of high-risk acute leukemia that are of unknown etiology. His work has capitalized upon a long-standing study of the genomics of acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL), the most common childhood cancer, that has resulted in multiple publications and influenced the understanding of the genetic basis of ALL. Specifically, his recent project using transcriptome sequencing and innovative computational pipelines has refined ALL classification into over 20 distinct subtypes and resulted in major advances in diagnostic and therapeutic approaches in ALL.