Overview
The Waitkus Laboratory is a team of researchers focused on understanding the molecular biology of malignant brain tumors. We work alongside clinician-scientists in the Preston Robert Tisch Brain Tumor Center at Duke to investigate the mechanisms by which brain tumors arise, progress, and recur.
Adult and pediatric malignant gliomas are caused by specific sets of genetic mutations that allow tumor cells to (1) proliferate indefinitely, (2) obtain and utilize nutrients to grow, and (3) evade normal anti-tumor protective mechanisms, such as programed cell death and immune surveillance. In the Waitkus Laboratory, our overarching goal is to better understand the mechanisms underlying the pathogenesis and progression of malignant gliomas. We aim to use this knowledge to develop improved methods for glioma diagnosis, prognostication, and treatment
Current Appointments & Affiliations
Recent Publications
Mechanisms of telomere maintenance and associated therapeutic vulnerabilities in malignant gliomas.
Journal Article Neuro Oncol · June 3, 2024 A majority of cancers (~85%) activate the enzyme telomerase to maintain telomere length over multiple rounds of cellular division. Telomerase-negative cancers activate a distinct, telomerase-independent mechanism of telomere maintenance termed alternative ... Full text Link to item CiteInterplay between ATRX and IDH1 mutations governs innate immune responses in diffuse gliomas.
Journal Article Nat Commun · January 25, 2024 Stimulating the innate immune system has been explored as a therapeutic option for the treatment of gliomas. Inactivating mutations in ATRX, defining molecular alterations in IDH-mutant astrocytomas, have been implicated in dysfunctional immune signaling. ... Full text Link to item CiteUnderstanding and therapeutically exploiting cGAS/STING signaling in glioblastoma.
Journal Article J Clin Invest · January 16, 2024 Since the discovery that cGAS/STING recognizes endogenous DNA released from dying cancer cells and induces type I interferon and antitumor T cell responses, efforts to understand and therapeutically target the STING pathway in cancer have ensued. Relative ... Full text Link to item CiteRecent Grants
Role of ATRX deficiency as a determinant of topoisomerase 1 inhibitor sensitivity in high grade gliomas
ResearchPrincipal Investigator · Awarded by American Cancer Society, Inc. · 2025 - 2028The Role of SMARCAL1 Depletion on Increased Immunogenicity in ALT+ Gliomas
FellowshipPrincipal Investigator · Awarded by National Institutes of Health · 2025 - 2028ATRXmutations,innate immune activation and therapeutic vunerabilityin malignant gliomas
ResearchInvestigator · Awarded by National Cancer Institute · 2022 - 2027View All Grants