Vu Nguyen Ngo, Ph.D.
- Molecular Pathogenesis of Lymphoid Malignancies
Cancer cells are often addicted to a transformed state that involves deregulation of multiple signal transduction pathways. A major goal of Dr. Ngo’s research is to discover abnormal signaling that make cancer more aggressive and resistant to therapy. By combining high throughput genetic screen and next-generation sequencing approaches, he has identified key pathways and important molecular targets that are critical for cancer cell proliferation and survival (Ngo VN et al. 2011, Nature). His research has also led to discovery of cancer gene mutations that cause treatment resistance (Mohanty A et al. 2016, Oncotarget).
Dr. Ngo’s laboratory in the Department of Systems Biology focuses on genetic and epigenetic mechanisms of cancer mutations and their interactions in driving tumor development. His laboratory employs large-scale functional genetic screens using RNA interference and CRISPR technology in combination with genomics and proteomics approaches to dissect disease mechanisms in lymphoid malignancies. He also has a special focus on dissecting the mechanisms of deregulated B-cell receptor signaling and therapy resistance in aggressive lymphomas including mantle cell lymphoma.
Dr. Ngo completed his B.A. degree from the University of California Berkeley and earned a Ph.D. in biomedical sciences from the University of California San Francisco. His postdoctoral training was with Dr. Louis M. Staudt at the National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland. Dr. Ngo is an award recipient of the American Society of Hematology Scholar Award, the Gabrielle's Angel Foundation for Cancer Research, the Department of Defense's Career Development, the Concern Foundation for Cancer Research, and NIH Research Grant Awards.
Education & Experience
1996 - 2001, Ph.D. Biomedical Sciences, Thesis Advisor: Dr. Jason G. Cyster, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, California
1992 - 1994, B.A. Molecular Cell Biology, Research Mentor: Dr. Astar Winoto, University of California Berkeley, Berkeley, California
2001 - 2006, Postdoctoral fellow in the laboratory of Dr. Louis M. Staudt, National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland
2017 - present, Associate Professor, Department of Systems Biology, Beckman Research Institute of City of Hope, Duarte, CA
2010 - present, Member, Irell & Manella Graduate School of Biological Sciences, City of Hope, Duarte, California
2010 - present, Member, City of Hope's Comprehensive Cancer Center, Duarte, California
2010 - 2017, Assistant Professor, Beckman Research Institute of City of Hope, Duarte, California
2007 - 2010, Staff Scientist, National Cancer Institute, National Institute of Health, Bethesda, Maryland
2006 - 2007, Research Fellow, National Cancer Institute, National Institute of Health, Bethesda, Maryland
1998, Teaching Assistant, Department of Anatomy, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, California
1994 - 1996, Research Technician, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, California
Research
Laboratory
The research program in the Ngo laboratory is focused on pathogenetic mechanisms and the identification of molecular targets in aggressive lymphoid malignancies. In 2010, Dr. Ngo started his independent laboratory in the Division of Stem Cell and Leukemia Research at the Beckman Research Institute at City of Hope.
His laboratory has discovered an important role for recurrent mutations of cyclin D1, which results in deregulated protein turnover and therapy resistance in mantle cell lymphoma. In 2017, Dr. Ngo joined the Department of Systems Biology where he uses innovative functional genomics tools and powerful animal modeling using relevant patient-derived lymphoma samples to gain new insights into critical signaling pathways that are important in lymphomagenesis and resistance to therapy.
Awards & Memberships
Awards
2020-2022, Concern Foundation for Cancer Research Award
Memberships
2010-present, Member, American Society of Hematology
2017-present, Member, The Mantle Cell Lymphoma Consortium, Lymphoma Research Foundation
2022, Associate Editor, Cytokines and Soluble Mediators in Immunity, Frontiers in Immunology
Publications
- Xavier S, Nguyen V, Khanair V, Phan A, Yang L, Nelson M, Shukla RP, Wang J, Li A, Geng H, Lee J, Sadras T, Pham LV, Weisenburger DD, Chan WC, Lang KS, Shouse GP, Danilov AV, Song JY, Parekh S, Muschen M, Ngo VN. CEACAM1 as a mediator of B-cell receptor signaling in mantle cell lymphoma. Nat. Commun. 2025 (In press).
- Hoang NM, Liu Y, Bates PD, Heaton AR, Lopez AF, Liu P, Zhu F, Kondapelli A, Chen R, Zhang X, Selberg PE, Ngo VN, Skala MC, Capitini CM, Rui L. Targeting DNMT3A-mediated oxidative phosphorylation to overcome ibrutinib resistance in mantle cell lymphoma. Cell Rep Med. 2024 Apr 16;5(4):101484
- Yi S, Yan Y, Jin M, Bhattacharya S, Wang Y, Wu Y, Yang L, Giné E, Clot G, Chen L, Yu Y, Zou D, Wang J, Phan AT, Cui R, Li F, Sun Q, Zhai Q, Wang T, Yu Z, Liu L, Liu W, Lyv R, Sui W, Huang W, Xiong W, Wang H, Li C, Xiao Z, Hao M, Wang J, Cheng T, Bea S, Herrera AF, Danilov A, Campo E, Ngo VN, Qiu L, Wang L. Genomic and transcriptomic profiling reveals distinct molecular subsets associated with outcomes in mantle cell lymphoma. J Clin Invest. 2022; 132(3): e153283.
- Mohanty A, Sandoval N, Phan A, Nguyen TV, Chen RW, Budde E, Mei M, Popplewell L, Pham LV, Kwak LW, Weisenburger DD, Rosen ST, Chan WC, Müschen M, Ngo VN. Regulation of SOX11 expression through CCND1 and STAT3 in mantle cell lymphoma. Blood. 2018 Dec 10. doi: 10.1182/blood-2018-05-851667. [Epub ahead of print].
- Mohanty S, Mohanty A, Sandoval N, Tran T, Bedell V, Wu J, Scuto A, Weisenburger D, Ngo VN. Cyclin D1 depletion induces DNA damage in mantle cell lymphoma lines. Leuk Lymphoma. 58(3):676-688 (2017).
- Mohanty A, Sandoval N, Das M, Pillai R, Chen L, Chen RW, Amin HM, Wang M, Marcucci G, Weisenburger DD, Rosen ST, Pham LV, Ngo VN. CCND1 mutations increase protein stability and promote ibrutinib resistance in mantle cell lymphoma. Oncotarget. 7(45):73558-73572 (2016).
- Ngo VN. Identification of pathogenetically relevant genes in lymphomagenesis by shRNA library screens. Methods Mol Biol. 971:245-63 (2013).
- Lamy L, Ngo VN, Emre TNC, Shaffer AL, Yang Y, Tian E, Shaughnessy JD, Nair V, Kruhlak MJ, Zingone A, Landgren O, Staudt LM. Control of Autophagic Cell Death by Caspase-10 in Multiple Myeloma. Cancer Cell. 23(4):435-49 (2013).
- Sanda T, Tyner JW, Gutierrez A, Ngo VN, Glover J, Chang BH, Yost A, Ma W, Fleischman AG, Zhou W, Yang Y, Kleppe M, Ahn Y, Tatarek J, Kelliher MA, Neuberg DS, Levine RL, Moriggl R, Müller M, Gray NS, Jamieson CHM, Weng AP, Staudt LM, Druker BJ , and Look AT. TYK2-STAT1-BCL2 Pathway Dependence in T-Cell Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia. Cancer Discov. 3(5):564-577 (2013).
- Yeung CL, Ngo VN, Grohar PJ, Arnaldez FI, Asante A, Wan X, Khan J, Hewitt SM, Khanna C, Staudt LM, Helman LJ. Loss-of-function screen in rhabdomyosarcoma identifies CRKL-YES as a critical signal for tumor growth. Oncogene. 32(47):5429-38 (2013).
- Ngo VN, Young R, Schmitz R, Jhavar S, Xiao W, Lim KH, et al. Oncogenically Active MYD88 Mutations in Human Lymphoma. Nature. 2011; 470 (7332): 115-9.
- Ngo VN, Davis RE, Lamy L, Yu X, Zhao H, et al. A Loss-of-function RNA Interference Screen for Molecular Targets in Cancer. Nature. 2006; 441 (7089): 106-10.