Ping Mu, Ph.D.

Ping Mu received his B.S. in Biotechnology from Peking University, Beijing, China (2007). He earned his Ph.D. in Biomedical Sciences (Cancer Biology) from Weill Cornell Medical College (2013), where he worked with Dr. Andrea Ventura. There, he identified a microRNA called miR-19 as a crucial oncogenic driver of Myc-driven B cell lymphoma and prostate cancer. In 2013, Ping joined the laboratory of Dr. Charles L. Sawyers as a postdoctoral fellow at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York. His work focused on identifying a novel mechanism of antiandrogen resistance in prostate cancer mediated by increased lineage plasticity, or “identity fraud.” This lineage plasticity is enabled by the activation of SOX2 and can be reversed by SOX2 inhibition, which raises the hope that appropriate clinical intervention of lineage plasticity could prevent or overcome resistance.

After joining the faculty of UTSW in 2018, Ping and his team conducted an in vivo library screen investigating novel gene deletions which confer resistance to AR targeted therapy. Through this library screening, Mu lab has identified the loss of CHD1, an ATP-dependent chromatin remodeler frequently deleted in prostate cancer, confers resistance to AR targeted therapy and is correlated with worse clinical outcomes. The Mu lab then demonstrated that CHD1-loss, through global effects on chromatin, establishes a state of plasticity that accelerates the development of resistance through activation of heterogeneous effectors, which mediate the transition away from luminal lineage and AR dependency. This work suggests that proper clinical intervention of these resistance drivers may be a novel avenue which can be exploited to overcome resistance. 

Besides CHD1, Mu lab has identified several other novel genomic alterations which confer resistance to AR targeted therapy. Elucidating the mechanisms by which these genes confer resistance will help us understand AR targeted therapy resistance and develop new therapeutic strategies to prevent or overcome resistance and benefit patients with advanced prostate cancer. Ping is the recipient of a DoD PCRP Postdoctoral Training award (2014), a NIH K99/R00 Pathway to Independence award (2017), a Prostate Cancer Foundation Young Investigator award (2017), a Cancer Prevention Research Institute of Texas (CPRIT) Recruitment of First-Time, Tenure-Track Faculty Member award (2017) and a DoD Idea Development Award (2018). He is also the Deborah and W.A. “Tex” Moncrief, Jr. Scholar in Medical Research.  

Undergraduate

Peking University (2018), Biotechnology

Graduate School

Cornell University Medical Col (2018), Biomedical Sciences

• Antiandrogen resistance
• Novel biomarkers
• Prostate cancer

Featured Publications

Loss of CHD1 Promotes Heterogeneous Mechanisms of Resistance to AR-Targeted Therapy via Chromatin Dysregulation.

Zhang Z, Zhou C, Li X, Barnes SD, Deng S, Hoover E, Chen CC, Lee YS, Zhang Y, Wang C, Metang LA, Wu C, Tirado CR, Johnson NA, Wongvipat J, Navrazhina K, Cao Z, Choi D, Huang CH, Linton E, Chen X, Liang Y, Mason CE, de Stanchina E, Abida W, Lujambio A, Li S, Lowe SW, Mendell JT, Malladi VS, Sawyers CL, Mu P, Cancer Cell 2020 Mar

SOX2 promotes lineage plasticity and antiandrogen resistance in TP53- and RB1-deficient prostate cancer.

Mu P, Zhang Z, Benelli M, Karthaus WR, Hoover E, Chen CC, Wongvipat J, Ku SY, Gao D, Cao Z, Shah N, Adams EJ, Abida W, Watson PA, Prandi D, Huang CH, de Stanchina E, Lowe SW, Ellis L, Beltran H, Rubin MA, Goodrich DW, Demichelis F, Sawyers CL Science 2017 01 355 6320 84-88

Rb1 and Trp53 cooperate to suppress prostate cancer lineage plasticity, metastasis, and antiandrogen resistance.

Ku SY, Rosario S, Wang Y, Mu P, Seshadri M, Goodrich ZW, Goodrich MM, Labbé DP, Gomez EC, Wang J, Long HW, Xu B, Brown M, Loda M, Sawyers CL, Ellis L, Goodrich DW Science 2017 01 355 6320 78-83

An allelic series of miR-17 ~ 92-mutant mice uncovers functional specialization and cooperation among members of a microRNA polycistron.

Han YC, Vidigal JA, Mu P, Yao E, Singh I, González AJ, Concepcion CP, Bonetti C, Ogrodowski P, Carver B, Selleri L, Betel D, Leslie C, Ventura A Nat. Genet. 2015 Jul 47 7 766-75

Genetic dissection of the miR-17~92 cluster of microRNAs in Myc-induced B-cell lymphomas.

Mu P, Han YC, Betel D, Yao E, Squatrito M, Ogrodowski P, de Stanchina E, D'Andrea A, Sander C, Ventura A Genes Dev. 2009 Dec 23 24 2806-11

The paracrine induction of prostate cancer progression by caveolin-1.

Lin CJ, Yun EJ, Lo UG, Tai YL, Deng S, Hernandez E, Dang A, Chen YA, Saha D, Mu P, Lin H, Li TK, Shen TL, Lai CH, Hsieh JT, Cell Death Dis 2019 Nov 10 11 834

Targeting Breast Cancer Metastasis.

Jin X, Mu P Breast Cancer (Auckl) 2015 9 Suppl 1 23-34

MicroRNAs in Prostate Cancer: Small RNAs with Big Roles.

Mu P, Deng S, Fan X J Clin Cell Immunol 2015 315 6

Intact p53-dependent responses in miR-34-deficient mice.

Concepcion CP, Han YC, Mu P, Bonetti C, Yao E, D'Andrea A, Vidigal JA, Maughan WP, Ogrodowski P, Ventura A PLoS Genet. 2012 8 7 e1002797

Widespread regulatory activity of vertebrate microRNA* species.

Yang JS, Phillips MD, Betel D, Mu P, Ventura A, Siepel AC, Chen KC, Lai EC RNA 2011 Feb 17 2 312-26

• AACR 2020 NextGen Stars
  (2020-2020)
• AUA 2020 Early Career Investigator Showcase
  (2020-2020)
• Society for Basic Urologic Research Young Investigator Award
  (2019-2019)
• Welch Foundation Research Award
  (2019-2022)
• Deborah and W.A. “Tex” Moncrief, Jr. Scholar in Medical Research
  (2018-2022)
• DoD Idea Development Award
  (2018-2021)
• UT Southwestern Translational Research Pilot Award
  (2018-2020)
• CPRIT First-Time, Tenure-Track Faculty Member
  (2017-2022)
• Memorial Sloan Kettering Postdoctoral Researcher Award
  (2017)
• NIH K99/R00 Pathway to Independence Award
  (2017-2021)
• Prostate Cancer Foundation Young Investigator Award
  (2017-2020)
• DoD PCRP Postdoctoral Training Award
  (2014-2016)