Lu Sun, PhD

Dr. Sun's research seeks to understand how brain tumors develop therapeutic resistance and to translate these insights into clinically meaningful advances. Using integrated multi-omics approaches—including genomics, transcriptomics, epigenomics, and spatial transcriptomics—she investigates the molecular and cellular mechanisms underlying resistance to targeted therapies and immunotherapies in both primary and metastatic brain tumors. Through the development of innovative computational methods and biomarker discovery frameworks, her goal is to improve prognosis and advance precision medicine for patients with brain tumors.

Ding L, Sun L, Bu MT, Scott LN, Prins RM, Su MA, Lechner MG, Hugo W. Antigen presentation by clonally diverse CXCR5+ B cells to CD4 and CD8 T cells is associated with durable response to immune checkpoint inhibitors. Front Immunol. 2023; 14: 1176994. PMID: 37435085.

Sun L*, Kienzler JC*, Reynoso JG, Lee AH, Shiuan E, Li S, Kim J, Ding L, Monteleone AJ, Owens GC, Phillips J, Everson RG, Nathanson DA, Cloughesy TF, Li G, Liau LM, Hugo W, Kim W, and Prins RM. Immune checkpoint blockade induces distinct alterations in the microenvironment of primary and metastatic brain tumors. J Clin Invest. 2023;133(17): e169314. PMID: 37655659. *equal first authorship.

Everson RG, Hugo W, Sun L, Antonios J, Orpilla J, Lee A, Khattab S, Chavez C, Billingslea- Yoon E, Salazar A, Ellingson BM, Cloughesy TF, Liau LM and Prins RM. Dendritic Cell Vaccination in Conjunction with a TLR Agonist Polarizes Interferon Immune Responses Associated with Long term Survival in Malignant Glioma Patients. Nat Commun. 2024 May 8;15(1):3882. PMID: 37790490.

McFaline-Figueroa JR*, Sun L*, Qiao Y, Youssef GC, Li G, Kim J, Lee E, Nayak L, Chukwueke U, Beroukhim R, Batchelor T, Chiocca EA, Doherty L, Stefanik J, Partridge K, Spearman A, Myers A, Westergaard C, Russ A, Lavallee M, Smokovich A, LaForest-Roys C, Fox Garcia R, McCluskey C, Bi WL, Arnaout O, Peruzzi P, Cosgrove GR, Ligon KL, Arrillaga- Romany I, Clarke JL, Reardon DA, Cloughesy TF, Prins RM, Wen PY. Neoadjuvant anti-PD1 immunotherapy for surgically accessible recurrent glioblastoma: clinical and molecular outcomes of a stage 2 single-arm expansion cohort. Nat Commun. 15, 10757 (2024). PMID: 39737895. *equal first authorship.

Sun L, Markus LF, Sanchez JC, Lai TJ, Lee EQ, Li G, Kim J, Zhuang Z, Acevedo B, Everson TH, Mellinghoff IK, Aquilanti E, L. Castro NG, McFaline-Figueroa JR, Nayak L, Beroukhim R, Chong RA, Stone J, Kaley T, Schaff L, Wilcox J, Westergaard C, Russ A, Lavallee M, Chukwueke U, Van den Abbeele AD, Lim M, Ellingson BM, Reardon DA, Cloughesy TF, Prins RM, Wen PY. Neoadjuvant PD1 plus CTLA-4 immune checkpoint blockade in surgically resectable recurrent glioblastoma: a randomized surgical window-of-opportunity trial. Accepted in Nat Commun.