Xuemei Xie, PhD
Full Member, Cancer Biology Program, University of Hawaiʻi Cancer Center
Academic Appointment(s):
Assistant Professor (Assistant Researcher), University of Hawaiʻi Cancer Center, University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa
Degree(s):
PhD, Recombinant Antibody Engineering Technology, School of Environmental Sciences, University of Guelph, Canada
Postdoctoral Fellow, Translational Breast Cancer Research, Department of Breast Medical Oncology, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, USA
MSc, Reproductive Immunology, Department of Biomedical Sciences, University of Guelph, Canada
Honors
2022 - ZTA-IBC Fellowship Award, 11th Annual Zeta Tau Alpha Houston Alumnae Association Fellowship in Inflammatory Breast Cancer Research, Texas, USA
2021 - The ZTA Fellowship Award, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Texas, USA
2020, 2021, 2022 - FY20, FY21, and FY22 Employee Performance Awards, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer, Texas, USA
2017 - FY17 Quarterly Employee Performance Awards - Quarter 3, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer, Texas, USA
2015 - Golfer Against Cancer Research Grant, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Texas, USA
2014, 2015 - Bayer HealthCare Pharmaceuticals, Inc. Award in Translational Research, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Texas, USA
2011-2014 - Susan G. Komen for the Cure Postdoctoral Fellowship, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Texas, USA
2013 - Nomination for Division of Cancer Medicine Research Awards, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Texas, USA
2011, 2012, 2013 - Poster Finalist in the Poster Competition for Trainee Research Day, The University of Texas, MD Anderson Cancer Center, Texas, USA
Research Focus
Dr. Xie’s lab focuses on translational breast cancer research, including:
- Identification and validation of biomarkers that promote tumor progression and regulate tumor cell-immune cell interplay in the tumor microenvironment in breast cancer using genomic/proteomic approaches.
- Identification and validation of targets for drug development and biomarkers to predict the outcomes of patients with breast cancer.
- Investigation of molecular mechanisms underlying breast cancer progression.
- Preclinical development of optimal combination immunotherapy for breast cancer using in vitro systems and in vivo animal models.
In particular, her current research mainly focuses on:
- Investigating the contribution of MAPK/JNK signaling to the aggressiveness of triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC).
- Defining the impact of an immunosuppressive tumor microenvironment on TNBC aggressiveness.
- Developing novel effective targeted combination immunochemotherapy for TNBC.
Her mission is to establish targeted therapies that will transform the lives of patients suffering from this devastating disease.
Selected Publications
Xie X, Chauhan GB, Edupuganti R, Kogaw T, Park J, Tacam M, Mughees M, Vidhu F, Liu DD, Taliaferro JM, Pitner MK, Shen Y, Ueno NT, Krishnamurthy S, Hortobagyi GN, Tripathy D, Laere SJV, Bartholomeusz G, Dalby K, and Bartholomeusz C. (2023). Maternal embryonic leucine zipper kinase is associated with metastasis in triple-negative breast cancer. Cancer Res Commun.; 3(6): 1078–1092. PMID: 37377604.
Xuemei Xie, Jangsoon Lee, Jon A. Fuson, Heuy Liu, Debu Tripathy, and Naoto T. Ueno. (2023). Identification of molecules that enhances the antitumor activity of eribulin in metastatic breast cancer cell lines. Biomedicines;11(3):735. PMID: 36979714.
Semba T, Wang X, Xie X, Cohen EN, Reuben JM, Dalby KN, Long JP, Phi LTH, Tripathy D, Ueno NT. (2022). Identification of JNK active triple-negative breast cancer cluster associated with immunosuppressive tumor microenvironment. J Natl Cancer Inst.; 114:97-108. PMID: 34250544.
Xuemei Xie, Jangsoon Lee, Huey Liu, Troy Pearson, Alexander Y. Lu, Debu Tripathy, Gayathri R. Devi, Chandra Bartholomeusz, and Naoto T. Ueno. (2021). Birinapant enhances gemcitabine’s anti-tumor efficacy in triple-negative breast cancer by inducing intrinsic pathway–dependent apoptosis. Mol Cancer Ther.; 20(2):296-306. PMID: 33323457.
Maria Gagliardi, Mary Kathryn Pitner, Jihyun Park, Xuemei Xie, Hitomi Saso, Richard A. Larson, Rachel M. Sammons, Huiqin Chen, Caimiao Wei, Hiroko Masuda, Gaurav Chauhan, Kimie Kondo, Debu Tripathy, Naoto T. Ueno, Kevin N. Dalby, Bisrat G. Debeb, and Chandra Bartholomeusz. (2020). Differential functions of ERK1 and ERK2 in lung metastasis processes in triple-negative breast cancer. Sci Rep.; 10: 8537-48. PMID: 32444778.
Xie X, Kaoud TS, Edupuganti R, Zhang T, Kogawa T, Zhao Y, Chauhan GB, Giannoukos DN, Qi Y, Tripathy D, Wang J, Gray NS, Dalby KN, Bartholomeusz C, Ueno NT. (2017). c-Jun N-terminal kinase promotes stem cell phenotype in triple-negative breast cancer through upregulation of Notch1 via activation of c-Jun. Oncogene. May 4;36(18):2599–608. PMID: 27941886.
Selected Reviews
Xie X*, Lee J*, Iwase T*, Kai M, Ueno NT. (2022). Emerging drug targets for triple-negative breast cancer: A guided tour of the preclinical landscape. Expert Opin. Ther. Targets; 26(5):405-425. (* equal first authors). PMID: 35574694.
Takashi Semba, Rachel Sammons, Xiaoping Wang, Xuemei Xie, Kevin N. Dalby KN, and Naoto T. Ueno. (2021). JNK Signaling in Stem Cell Self-Renewal and Differentiation. Int J Mol Sci.; 21(7):2613. PMID: 32283767.
Active Grants
X. Xie, Co-Investigator; N. Ueno, PI
NIH/NCI
1R01CA278056-01A1
“Developing a novel combination immunotherapy for triple-negative breast cancer”
9/18/2023 – 8/31/2028
X. Xie, PI
Ola Hawaii CoreBucks Program
“Determine the impact of JNK knockout on the immune profile of the tumor microenvironment in triple-negative breast cancer”
10/1/2023 – 12/31/2023
X. Xie, Co-Investigator; N. Ueno, PI
Bridge funding
“Developing a novel combination immunotherapy for triple-negative breast cancer”
7/1/2021 – 6/30/2023
