Research

The world-class team of scientists at the Polsky Urologic Cancer Institute are working to drive breakthroughs in treatment and accelerate new discoveries. We strive to change the course of therapeutic developments and redefine treatment options, lead the way in translational and biotechnological research, launch innovative clinical trials that provide patients with early access to the most advanced treatments and enhance the training and education of leaders in the field.

Our Research

 Sarki Abdulkadir Lab

Studying the mechanisms of prostate cancer initiation, progression and recurrence and strategies to therapeutically target these processes

 Qi Cao Lab

Identifying novel molecular therapeutic targets for advanced prostate cancer

 William Catalona Lab

Investigating genetic insights into the causes of prostate cancer and its possible treatments and cures

 Shilajit Kundu Lab
Investigating the association between inflammatory bowel disease and prostate cancer

 Joshua Meeks Lab

Investigating genetic and epigenetic changes in bladder cancer, as well as immuno-oncology in bladder cancer

 Adam Murphy Lab

Studying the biologic and environmental sources of health disparities in prostate cancer

 Ashley Ross Lab

Developing novel diagnostic and therapeutic strategies for prostate cancer

 Jennifer Wu Lab

Understanding the mechanisms of cancer immune evasion and development of novel immune therapy

 Rendong Yang Lab

Integrating genomics, big data, and computing to drive innovations in human genetics, precision oncology, and cancer immunotherapy

 Jindan Yu Lab

Understanding the genetic and epigenetic pathways to prostate cancer.

The Yu lab focuses on cancer genomics and translational cancer research.  At the current stage, our primary research interest is to understand aberrant transcriptional and epigenetic regulation of prostate cancer and to translate such knowledge into clinical applications.  We utilize high-throughput genomic techniques in combination with bioinformatics/statistical analysis to generate testable hypothesis.   We then test these hypotheses using traditional molecular and/or cellular biological approaches and examine the functional relevance of these innovative regulatory pathways in vitro and in vivo using cell lines and mouse models.  Based on the genetic and epigenetic underpinning of the disease, we pursue translational research to develop new biomarkers and novel therapeutics strategies for advanced prostate cancer.

Select Publications

Kim J, Lee Y, Lu X, Song B, Fong KW, Cao Q, Licht JD, Zhao JC, Yu J.  Polycomb- and Methylation-Independent Roles of EZH2 as a Transcription Activator.  Cell Reports. 2018 Dec 04. PMID: 30517868

Fong KW, Zhao JC, Song B, Zheng B, Yu J.  TRIM28 protects TRIM24 from SPOP-mediated degradation and promotes prostate cancer progression.  Nat Commun. 2018 Nov 27. PMID: 30479348

Fong KW, Zhao JC, Kim J, Li S, Yang YA, Song B, Rittie L, Hu M, Yang X, Perbal B, Yu JPolycomb-mediated disruption of an androgen receptor feedback loop drives castration-resistant prostate cancer.  CancerRes. 2016 Nov 4. PMID: 27815387

View all lab publications via PubMed.

For more information, visit the faculty profile page of Jindan Yu, MD, PhD.

Contact Us

Contact Dr. Yu at 312-503-2980 or the Yu Lab at 312-503-3041.

Lab Staff

Research Faculty

Jonathan Zhao, MD, MS, Shivani Agarwal, PhD

Postdoctoral Fellows

Ahmad Hasan Othman, PhD, Jawad Akhtar, PhD, Hongshun Shi, MD, PhD, Najma Shaheen, PhD, Wanqing Xie, PhDXiaodong Lu, PhD

Graduate Students

Galina GritsinaLourdes Brea, Qi ChuViriya Keo

Undergraduate Students

Edward SeoIrina Cheng

Core Resources

Scientists associated with our institute have access to all of the services, tools and facilities of the Feinberg School of Medicine and the Robert H. Lurie Comprehensive Cancer Center of Northwestern University. Visit the links below to learn more.

Lurie Cancer Center Shared ResourcesFeinberg Research Cores

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