Dr. Alex Papachristodoulou is a translational cancer biologist, focusing on the molecular and cellular mechanisms of prostate carcinogenesis. He obtained his MSc degree in Cancer Therapeutics at the Barts Cancer Institute of the Queen Mary University of London and went on to complete his doctoral training in Cancer Biology at the University of Zurich. Following the completion of his PhD, Dr. Papachristodoulou joined the laboratory of Dr. Cory Abate-Shen at the Columbia University Irving Medical Center, where he identified novel subcellular homeobox gene functions in prostate cancer initiation, developing novel approaches to improve prostate cancer prognosis and treatment. The focal point of his research, for which he obtained the Prostate Cancer Foundation (PCF) Young Investigator and National Cancer Institute (NCI) K99/R00 Pathway to Independence awards, is to decipher the role mitochondrial dysfunction in tumorigenesis to enhance our understanding of prostate cancer initiation, predisposition to aggressive disease and precision therapy. Dr. Papachristodoulou is particularly interested in determining the functional impact and clinical relevance of genetic and metabolic factors for prostate cancer progression and disparities. By understanding how these alterations confer specific vulnerabilities to more aggressive tumors, his studies aim at developing novel precision medicine strategies that can improve patient care.
Dr. Papachristodoulou will be joining the Department of Microbiology, Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics at Rutgers Health New Jersey Medical School in January 2025, to establish a translational prostate cancer program as an Assistant Professor in the Center for Cell Signaling and the Center for Immunity & Inflammation.
Social media: X/Tweeter: @Alexandros_P