Publications | Zhang Lab

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Zhang’s research focuses on understanding how cancer cells respond to DNA damage and leveraging those vulnerabilities to improve radiation therapy and immunotherapy. Spanning foundational discoveries in DNA repair mechanisms to translational studies in pancreatic cancer and diffuse midline glioma, these publications highlight strategies that make tumors more susceptible to treatment while enhancing anti-tumor immune responses. Together, this work advances the development of more precise, effective therapies for some of the most challenging cancers to treat.

  1. Guo Y, Li Z, Parsels LA, Wang Z, Parsels JD, Dalvi A, The S, Hu N, Valvo VM, Doherty R, Peterson E, Wang X, Venkataraman S, Agnihotri S, Venneti S, Wahl DR, Green MD, Lawrence TS, Koschmann C, Morgan MA, Zhang Q. H3K27M diffuse midline glioma is homologous recombination defective and sensitized to radiotherapy and NK cell-mediated antitumor immunity by PARP inhibition. Neuro Oncol. 2025 Sep 17;27(8):2129-2146. PubMed Central PMCID: PMC12448828. 

  2. Koschmann C, Al-Holou WN, Alonso MM, Anastas J, Bandopadhayay P, Barron T, Becher O, Cartaxo R, Castro MG, Chung C, Clausen M, Dang D, Doherty R, Duchatel R, Dun M, Filbin M, Franson A, Galban S, Garcia Moure M, Garton H, Gowda P, Marques JG, Hawkins C, Heath A, Hulleman E, Ji S, Jones C, Kilburn L, Kline C, Koldobskiy MA, Lim D, Lowenstein PR, Lu QR, Lum J, Mack S, Magge S, Marini B, Martin D, Marupudi N, Messinger D, Mody R, Morgan M, Mota M, Muraszko K, Mueller S, Natarajan SK, Nazarian J, Niculcea M, Nuechterlein N, Okada H, Opipari V, Pai MP, Pal S, Peterson E, Phoenix T, Prensner JR, Pun M, Raju GP, Reitman ZJ, Resnick A, Rogawski D, Saratsis A, Sbergio SG, Souweidane M, Stafford JM, Tzaridis T, Venkataraman S, Vittorio O, Wadden J, Wahl D, Wechsler-Reya RJ, Yadav VN, Zhang X, Zhang Q, Venneti S. A road map for the treatment of pediatric diffuse midline glioma. Cancer Cell. 2024 Jan 8;42(1):1-5. PubMed Central PMCID: PMC11067690. 

  3. Parsels LA, Wahl DR, Koschmann C, Morgan MA, Zhang Q. Developing H3K27M mutant selective radiosensitization strategies in diffuse intrinsic pontine glioma. Neoplasia. 2023 Mar;37:100881. PubMed Central PMCID: PMC9918797.

  4. Zhang Q, Green MD, Lang X, Lazarus J, Parsels JD, Wei S, Parsels LA, Shi J, Ramnath N, Wahl DR, Pasca di Magliano M, Frankel TL, Kryczek I, Lei YL, Lawrence TS, Zou W, Morgan MA. Inhibition of ATM Increases Interferon Signaling and Sensitizes Pancreatic Cancer to Immune Checkpoint Blockade Therapy. Cancer Res. 2019 Aug 1;79(15):3940-3951. PubMed Central PMCID: PMC6684166. (Featured in Cancer Research) 

  5. Zhang Q, Mady ASA, Ma Y, Ryan C, Lawrence TS, Nikolovska-Coleska Z, Sun Y, Morgan MA. The WD40 domain of FBXW7 is a poly(ADP-ribose)-binding domain that mediates the early DNA damage response. Nucleic Acids Res. 2019 May 7;47(8):4039-4053. PubMed Central PMCID: PMC6486556. 

  6. Zhang Q, Karnak D, Tan M, Lawrence TS, Morgan MA, Sun Y. FBXW7 Facilitates Nonhomologous End-Joining via K63-Linked Polyubiquitylation of XRCC4. Mol Cell. 2016 Feb 4;61(3):419-433. PubMed Central PMCID: PMC4744117. (Featured by Cancer Discovery)