Katy L. Swancutt, DVM, PhD

Professional Background

Dr. Swancutt's research interests focus on genetic and molecular determinants of metastatic progression, including emerging roles for small non-coding RNAs in metastasis and mechanisms underlying radiation abscopal effects. Her background encompasses extensive training in cancer biology, radiation biology, cancer immunology, and metastasis, as well as veterinary medicine. Her research incorporates molecular biology, cellular biology, and pre-clinical modeling to study the basic biology of metastatic cancer with the goal of translating discoveries and new mechanistic understanding to clinical applications.

• BS, Biology/Zoology , California State University Long Beach, Long Beach, CA
• PhD, Radiological Health Sciences, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO
• DVM, Small Animal Medicine, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO
• Post Doctoral Fellowship, Tumor Immunology & Radiation Biology, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX
• Post Doctoral Fellowship, Cancer Genetics & Metastasis, University of Kansas Medical Center, Kansas City, KS

Research

Overview

Metastasis is the primary cause of cancer-related death, yet the molecular mechanisms that enable tumor cells to spread and colonize distant organs remain incompletely understood. Emerging evidence suggests that non-coding RNAs, including tRNA-derived fragments (tRFs), play regulatory roles in cancer progression. Our preliminary data indicate that specific mitochondrial tRNA-derived fragments (mt-tRF) are differentially expressed in cancer versus normal tissues. SNPs in the mitochondrial genome correlate with differential generation of mt-tRF and with metastatic burden in mouse models of breast cancer. Dr. Swancutt aims to evaluate the relationship between mitochondrial genomic SNPs, mt-tRF generation and expression, and evaluate mt-tRF functional significance and biologic mechanisms in metastasis.