Isabel Mendizabal
imendizabal
Isabel Mendizabal
EMERGING SCIENTIST
Ikerbasque Research Fellow
Ikerbasque Research Fellow
Cancer Cell Signaling And Metabolism Lab
Orcid: 0
Address: Bizkaia Science and Technology Park, building 801A, Derio (Bizkaia)

Isabel Mendizabal obtained her BSc in Biology and a MSc in Biomedical Research from the Universitat Pompeu Fabra and continued her scientific pursuits by completing her PhD in Biomedicine from the same institution. At the same time, she also obtained the Certificate of Pedagogical Aptitude (CAP).

In 2013, Dr. Mendizabal joined the laboratory of Prof. Soojin Yi at Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta (USA). Her research took on a deeper functional genomics perspective, concentrating on the role of epigenomics in regulating cell-type-specific transcriptional programs. Her contributions included dissecting the human-specific brain regulome and its implications for disease, as well as revealing novel mechanisms underlying complex diseases through cell-type-specific multiomics mapping in cancer and neuropsychiatric disorders.

In 2020, Dr. Mendizabal became an Ikerbasque Research Fellow in the Cancer Cell Signaling and Metabolism Lab at CIC bioGUNE and she currently holds the position of Emerging Scientist. The overarching theme of her research trajectory is to understand diseases from both an evolutionary and regulatory standpoint.

Dr. Mendizabal is pursuing three research paths that integrate evolutionary biology, complex disease epigenomics, and prostate disease biology.

• Evolutionary and Clinical Epigenetics, she investigates the impact of lifestyle and genomics on common pathologies like prostatic diseases using bioinformatic analysis of clinical cohorts.
• Cell-type Identity and Dysregulation in Complex Diseases, she explores pathologic mechanisms through cellular identity loss, employing advanced computational methods on multiomic datasets.
• Cancer Aggressiveness, she is examining how epigenomic reprogramming and germline risk influence cancer cells and their microenvironment, with the aim of developing prognostic tools for precision medicine.

Awards & recognitions
Postdoc talent” from CRIS Cancer Foundation as PI (€400K) (2021). CAF-Elhuyar Scientific Dissemination Award (2013). Postdoctoral Fellowship from the Basque Government (2013). Extraordinary PhD Award (2012). Predoctoral Fellowship from the Basque Government (2008).

Collaborations
Affiliated with the Traslational Prostate Cancer Research Lab established between CIC bioGUNE and Basurto University Hospital, leading computational research lines. This affiliation affords a unique opportunity to access patient cohorts featuring various urogenital pathologies.

co-PI within the European PIPgen Network (MSCA-ITN) on PI3K/PTEN related diseases. Collaborating with Mariona Graupera (Josep Carreras Leukemia Research Institute) on vascular and perivascular cell biology. Working with Gorka Alkorta-Aranburu (co-director of the CIMA Lab Diagnostics, UNAV) and Margarita Sánchez del Río (neurologist at CUN) in understanding epigenetic alterations in neurological diseases. Member of an ongoing AstraZeneca grant working group led by Arkaitz Carracedo (CIC bioGUNE), Joaquin Mateo (VHIO) and Maria Casanova-Acebes (CNIO) that addresses intratumoral cellular communication in prostate cancer. Recently collaboration with the pan-cancer germline effort by the Clinical Proteomic Tumor Analysis Consortium (National Cancer of Institute, USA) to measure the impact of genetic risk in the tumor proteome.

Currently, co-directing four PhD students in collaboration with Arkaitz Carracedo (CIC bioGUNE) and Mariona Graupera (Josep Carreras Leukemia Research institute).

Latest Publications

2022

2021

2020

The research in the Carracedo lab is aimed at deconstructing the essential requirements of cancer cells with special emphasis on the translation of the acquired knowledge from bench to bedside. In order to define the genuine features of cancer cells, we focus on the signalling and metabolic alterations in prostate and breast cancer. Through the use of a hierarchical approach with increasing complexity, we work on cell lines and primary cultures (using cell and molecular biology technologies), mouse models of prostate cancer that are faithful to the human disease and the analysis of human specimens through the development of prospective and retrospective studies. Our work stems from the hypothesis that cancer is driven by signalling and metabolic alterations that, once identified, can be targeted for therapy. The center and our collaborator institutions offer state-of-the-art technologies (from OMICS to in vivo imaging), which allow us to build and answer our hypotheses with high level of confidence.
To address our scientific questions in cancer, the Carracedo lab has developed a series of research lines:

  • Bioinformatics-based discovery. The lab takes full advantage on publicly available human prostate and breast cancer datasets in order to identify candidate genes to contribute to cancer pathogenesis, progression and response to therapy. Best hits are then validated employing genetic mouse models, xenograft surrogate assays and the latest advances in cellular and molecular biology combined with OMICs technologies.
  • Genetic mouse models as a source for the identification of novel cancer players. Genetically engineered mouse models (GEMMs) can faithfully recapitulate many aspects of human cancer. Dr. Carracedo envisions the molecular analysis of GEMMs with high throughput technologies as a mean to identify novel cancer-related genes. These hits are then validated through the analysis of human cancer specimens and cellular and molecular biology approaches.
  • Multi-OMICs analysis for non-invasive biomarker identification. Biofluids are the perfect source for cancer biomarkers that can inform about the presence or features of cancer. The lab has undertaken a biomarker discovery approach by applying the latest OMICs technologies to biofluid specimens from well-annotated prostate cancer patients, in order to define better molecules that inform about this disease.
Latest Publications

SERS analysis of cancer cell- secreted purines reveals a unique paracrine crosstalk in MTAP- deficient tumors

Valera, PS; Plou, J; Garcia, I; Astobiza, I; Viera, C; Aransay, AM; Martin, JE; Sasselli, IR; Carracedo, A; Liz-Marzan, LM;

PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

2023-12-26

STAT3/LKB1 controls metastatic prostate cancer by regulating mTORC1/CREB pathway

Pencik, J; Philippe, C; Schlederer, M; Atas, E; Pecoraro, M; Grund-Gröchke, S; Li, W; Tracz, A; Heidegger, I; Lagger, S; Trachtová, K; Oberhuber, M; Heitzer, E; Aksoy, O; Neubauer, HA; Wingelhofer, ...

MOLECULAR CANCER

2023-08-12

METTL1 promotes tumorigenesis through tRNA-derived fragment biogenesis in prostate cancer

García-Vilchez, R; Anazco-Guenkova, AM; Dietmann, S; López, J; Morón-Calvente, V; DAmbrosi, S; Nombela, P; Zamacola, K; Mendizabal, I; García-Longarte, S; Zabala-Letona, A; Astobiza, I; Fernández, ...

MOLECULAR CANCER

2023-07-29

Metabolism in the tumor cell and beyond

Carracedo, A;

MOLECULAR ONCOLOGY

2023-06-06

Machine Learning-Assisted High-Throughput SERS Classification of Cell Secretomes

Plou, J; Valera, PS; García, I; Vila-Liarte, D; Renero-Lecuna, C; Ruiz-Cabello, J; Carracedo, A; Liz-Marzán, LM;

SMALL

2023-04-12

Identifying prognostic parameters related to surgical technique in patients treated by robotic radical prostatectomy

Iriarte, AL; Viscasillas, IL; Gonzalez, SR; Martín, AS; Aparicio, DG; Olano, AU; Pérez, AC; Urzaiz, MU;

ACTAS UROLOGICAS ESPANOLAS

2023-01-01

Master Transcription Factor Reprogramming Unleashes Selective Translation Promoting Castration Resistance and Immune Evasion in Lethal Prostate Cancer

Santasusagna, S; Zhu, SJ; Jawalagatti, V; Carceles-Cordon, M; Ertel, A; Garcia-Longarte, S; Song, WM; Fujiwara, N; Li, PY; Mendizabal, I; Petrylak, DP; Kelly, WK; Reddy, EP; Wang, LG; Schiewer, ...

CANCER DISCOVERY

2023-01-01

CiberAMP: An R Package to Identify Differential mRNA Expression Linked to Somatic Copy Number Variations in Cancer Datasets

Caloto, R; Lorenzo-Martín, LF; Quesada, V; Carracedo, A; Bustelo, XR;

BIOLOGY-BASEL

2022-10-01

RAD51 is a druggable target that sustains replication fork progression upon DNA replication stress

Feu, S; Unzueta, F; Ercilla, A; Pérez-Venteo, A; Jaumot, M; Agell, N;

PLOS ONE

2022-08-15

Pyruvate Kinase M1 Suppresses Development and Progression of Prostate Adenocarcinoma

Davidson, SM; Schmidt, DR; Heyman, JE; Brien, JPO; Liu, AC; Israelsen, WJ; Dayton, TL; Sehgal, R; Bronson, RT; Freinkman, E; Mak, HH; Fanelli, GN; Malstrom, S; Bellinger, G; Carracedo, A; Pandolfi, ...

CANCER RESEARCH

2022-07-01

Epigenetic Mechanisms Influencing Therapeutic Response in Breast Cancer

Arruabarrena-Aristorena, A; Toska, E;

FRONTIERS IN ONCOLOGY

2022-06-14

Methionine Cycle Rewiring by Targeting miR-873-5p Modulates Ammonia Metabolism to Protect the Liver from Acetaminophen

Rodríguez-Agudo, R; Goikoetxea-Usandizaga, N; Serrano-Maciá, M; Fernández-Tussy, P; Fernández-Ramos, D; Lachiondo-Ortega, S; González-Recio, I; Gil-Pitarch, C; Mercado-Gómez, M; Morán, L; Bizkarguenaga, ...

ANTIOXIDANTS

2022-05-01

High SOX9 Maintains Glioma Stem Cell Activity through a Regulatory Loop Involving STAT3 and PML

Aldaz, P; Martín-Martín, N; Saenz-Antoñanzas, A; Carrasco-Garcia, E; Alvarez-Satta, M; Elúa-Pinin, A; Pollard, SM; Lawrie, CH; Moreno-Valladares, M; Samprón, N; Hench, J; Lovell-Badge, R; Carracedo, ...

INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF MOLECULAR SCIENCES

2022-05-01

Stromal oncostatin M cytokine promotes breast cancer progression by reprogramming the tumor microenvironment

Araujo, AM; Abaurrea, A; Azcoaga, P; Lopez-Velazco, JI; Manzano, S; Rodriguez, J; Rezola, R; Egia-Mendikute, L; Valdés-Mora, F; Flores, JM; Jenkins, L; Pulido, L; Osorio-Querejeta, I; Fernández-Nogueira, ...

JOURNAL OF CLINICAL INVESTIGATION

2022-04-01

Angiocrine polyamine production regulates adiposity

Monelli, E; Villacampa, P; Zabala-Letona, A; Martinez-Romero, A; Llena, J; Beiroa, D; Gouveia, L; Chivite, I; Zagmutt, S; Gama-Perez, P; Osorio-Conles, O; Muixi, L; Martinez-Gonzalez, A; Castillo, ...

NATURE METABOLISM

2022-03-14

PI3K-regulated Glycine N-methyltransferase is required for the development of prostate cancer

Zabala-Letona, A; Arruabarrena-Aristorena, A; Fernandez-Ruiz, S; Viera, C; Carlevaris, O; Ercilla, A; Mendizabal, I; Martin, T; Macchia, A; Camacho, L; Pujana-Vaquerizo, M; Sanchez-Mosquera, ...

ONCOGENESIS

2022-02-23

Prospects of Surface-Enhanced Raman Spectroscopy for Biomarker Monitoring toward Precision Medicine

Plou, J; Valera, PS; García, I; de Albuquerque, CDL; Carracedo, A; Liz-Marzán, LM;

ACS PHOTONICS

2022-02-16

Implication of Ceramide Kinase/C1P in Cancer Development and Progression

Camacho, L; Ouro, A; Gomez-Larrauri, A; Carracedo, A; Gomez-Munoz, A;

CANCERS

2022-01-01

Identification of proximal SUMO-dependent interactors using SUMO-ID

Barroso-Gomila, O; Trulsson, F; Muratore, V; Canosa, I; Merino-Cacho, L; Cortazar, AR; Pérez, C; Azkargorta, M; Iloro, I; Carracedo, A; Aransay, AM; Elortza, F; Mayor, U; Vertegaal, ACO; Barrio, ...

NATURE COMMUNICATIONS

2021-11-18

Nanocomposite Scaffolds for Monitoring of Drug Diffusion in Three-Dimensional Cell Environments by Surface-Enhanced Raman Spectroscopy

Plou, J; Molina-Martínez, B; García-Astrain, C; Langer, J; García, I; Ercilla, A; Perumal, G; Carracedo, A; Liz-Marzán, LM;

NANO LETTERS

2021-10-06