New York University · BiochemistryYanai Lab
Itai Yanai · New York, New York
Research Focus
Dr. Itai Yanai's lab at New York University School of Medicine focuses on understanding how cancer cells adapt to treatment, specifically studying the transition from lung adenocarcinoma to squamous cell carcinoma in response to specific drugs like adagrasib. By exploring molecular mechanisms and chromatin regulators involved in this process, the lab aims to uncover new therapeutic strategies to counteract drug resistance in lung cancer. Their research combines advanced genetic screening techniques with mouse and organoid models to identify vulnerabilities in cancer cells.
lung cancerdrug resistanceKRASchromatin remodelingtransdifferentiationorganoidsCRISPR screeningcancer therapymolecular mechanismstherapeutic vulnerabilities
Research Aims
5AIM 01Identify chromatin regulators involved in the adeno-to-squamous transition in lung cancer.
AIM 02Screen for small molecule inhibitors that target these chromatin regulators.
AIM 03Decouple lineage state transitions from drug resistance programs in lung adenocarcinoma.
AIM 04Assess the clinical relevance of resistance programs in human lung tumors.
AIM 05Develop novel therapeutic strategies to prevent resistance in KRAS mutant lung cancer.
Skills the Lab Values
CRISPR/Cas technologymouse modelsorganoid culturePerturb-Seq screeningscMultiome analysissmall molecule inhibitorsgene editing techniquescell culturehistological analysispharmacology techniques
Output against the department
Publications206top 39% of dept.154th of 402
this lab
most publishedleast published
Citations17ktop 26% of dept.105th of 402
this lab
most citedleast cited
Career totals from OpenAlex, compared against labs that share a department. A department spans everything from one paper to tens of thousands, so bar heights are on a log scale — otherwise the largest lab would flatten every other bar to a line.