Róża Przanowska
Assistant Professor
Cancer Biology
Research Interests:
- Breast cancer development
- Non-coding RNAs
- Drug resistance
- Structure-function relationship
- Patient-derived organoids
Dr. Przanowska's laboratory is interested in understanding how long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) drive heterogeneity in breast cancer through their structure and function, and how transient oncogenes and premalignant microenvironments govern the earliest steps of malignant transformation. Our translational research integrates primary patient-derived organoids, mouse models, molecular approaches, and computational biology to connect fundamental discoveries in RNA biology and cancer genetics to novel diagnostic and therapeutic strategies for breast cancer.
RP lab research has four primary goals. The first goal is to define the structural "grammar" of lncRNAs. Our understanding of lncRNA structural organization remains extremely limited, and unlike proteins, lncRNAs lack a well-defined domain code. By resolving lncRNA secondary structures and systematically deleting individual structural domains, we are testing whether discrete, functionally autonomous modules govern lncRNA activity and pro-oncogenic phenotypes. The second goal is to understand the earliest steps of breast cancer initiation. We investigate how rare populations of premalignant cells in ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS) acquire the ability to survive and progress to invasive disease. By combining human genetics, patient samples, and experimental models, we aim to identify the molecular determinants that distinguish indolent DCIS from disease that goes on to become invasive. The third goal is to model patient-specific tumor biology using zero-passage, patient-derived organoids that we developed to capture tumor state within a two-week time frame. This system allows us to more accurately reflect the biology of a patient's tumor than traditional passaged models, and has the potential to guide individualized therapeutic choices in the clinic. The fourth goal is to identify lncRNA drivers of transcriptional plasticity and endocrine treatment resistance. While tamoxifen is effective in treating ER+ breast cancer, intrinsic and acquired resistance remain major clinical challenges. We are working to identify the lncRNAs that are critical to the development of tamoxifen resistance, with the goal of developing new lncRNA-based biomarkers and RNA-directed therapeutics.
Education
- BSc in Biotechnology, University of Warsaw, Poland
- MSc in Biotechnology: Stem cells in biology and medicine, University of Warsaw, Poland
- Fulbright scholarship, University of Virginia
- PhD in Biomedical Sciences, Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics, University of Virginia
- NCI K00 Postdoctoral fellowship in Cancer Biology, Biomedical Engineering, University of Virginia
Research Interests
- Breast cancer development
- Non-coding RNAs
- Drug resistance
- Structure-function relationship
- Patient-derived organoids
Publications/Research Listings
- Przanowska RK†, Gomez-Villa J, Liu VJ, Antonides-Jensen N, Visvabharathy L, Alverdy JC, Hernandez SL, Yee SS†. (2026). IL-6R blockade with tocilizumab disrupts pericyte-and tumor cell-driven IL-6/STAT3 signaling, enhancing docetaxel efficacy in ER+ breast cancer. bioRxiv. doi: 10.64898/2026.01.29.702661. PMID 41659608.
- Przanowska RK*, Labban N*, Przanowski P, Hawes RB, Atkins KA, Showalter SL, Janes KA. (2024). Patient-derived response estimates from zero-passage organoids of luminal breast cancer. Breast Cancer Res. 26, 192. https://doi.org/10.1186/s13058-024-01931-5. PMID 39741344.
- Przanowski P, Przanowska RK, Guertin MJ. (2023). ANKLE1 cleaves mitochondrial DNA and contributes to cancer risk by driving the Warburg effect and apoptosis resistance. Commun Biol 6, 231. https://doi.org/10.1038/s42003-023-04611-w. PMID 36859531.
- Przanowska RK, Weidmann CA, Saha S, Cichewicz MA, Jensen KN, Przanowski P, Irving PS, Janes KA, Guertin MJ, Weeks KM, Dutta A. (2022). Distinct MUNC lncRNA structural domains regulate transcription of different promyogenic factors. Cell Rep. 38(7):110361. https://doi.org/10.1016%2Fj.celrep.2022.110361. PMID 35172143.