Jasmine Plummer Lab

Patterns of gene expression are highly dependent on the origin of the cells. When cells are perturbed, they can deviate from the path of normal development into pathogenesis. Pathogenicity is multifaceted, and its beginning and progression differ based on several factors. Our lab applies an integrative multi-omic approach to identify the molecular entities important for disease progression. 

Having a molecular understanding of a particular disease informs the prognosis and treatment of that disease. Disease pathogenesis is complicated and oftentimes, a subsequent genetic or epigenetic event takes place that causes development to go awry and pathogenicity to ensue. Our lab is interested in profiling cells of origin to better understand the mechanisms by which they become cancer. 

We are a functional genomics lab that integrates multiple types of data such as genomics, epigenomics, transcriptomics, proteomics and metabolomics. The Plummer Lab also uses a spatial omics approach to obtain a comprehensive view of the cellular processes that unfold during normal development and oncogenesis.

Understanding the context of the cell and its components is an integral part of development and disease. Single-cell approaches are helpful but limited in that we cannot view the entire cellular landscape. Spatial omics allow us to gain cellular context. This approach allows us to study the environment of the cells and since cellular organization drives biological function, this information is crucial in understanding the trajectory of development.

Neurodevelopmental disorders arise from the disruption of intricately coordinated genetic events that take place during early development. Our lab experimentally drives perturbations in neuroprogenitor cells to determine the cellular consequences of those perturbations. This allows us to better understand the mechanisms that lead to neurodevelopmental disorders. We aim to discover reliable biomarkers for neurodevelopmental disorders as well as contribute to the development of therapeutics.

Our lab also works with precursor cell lines from patients with risk genes for breast, prostate and ovarian cancers. Similar to our work with neurodegenerative diseases, our goal is to identify the genetic events that, when coupled with the presence of risk genes, lead to cancer. Understanding these events can help identify druggable targets.

Our lab develops and optimizes single-cell technologies and spatial methodologies. We identify limitations of existing technologies and determine how emerging datasets can be better utilized and analyzed to answer biological questions. Our approach has advanced our understanding of human disease and even led to the discovery of the first SARS-CoV-2 variant in the United States.