Jianjun Chen

Jianjun Chen, Ph.D. serves as Professor and Chair of the Department of Systems Biology and Director of the Center for RNA Biology and Therapeutics at City of Hope's Beckman Research Institute. Appointed Chair in August 2020, he previously served as Professor and Vice Chair from 2017-2020. He also holds the Simms/Mann Family Foundation Chair in Systems Biology since 2018.

Dr. Chen's research focuses on RNA and DNA epigenetic mechanisms in cancer development and therapy resistance. His laboratory has made seminal contributions to understanding RNA modifications including N⁶-methyladenosine (m⁶A), 5-methylcytosine (m⁵C), and 7-methylguanosine (m⁷G), and their roles in cancer initiation, progression, drug resistance, and immune evasion. The lab also studies DNA epigenetic regulation through TET proteins and develops novel therapeutic strategies targeting epigenetic regulators.

His recent publications reveal trends in RNA epigenetics, cancer metabolism, immune evasion mechanisms, and therapeutic targeting of epigenetic regulators. His work spans multiple cancer types including leukemia, lymphoma, and solid tumors, with emphasis on translating basic discoveries into clinical applications.

• Research Scholar of the American Cancer Society (2011)
• Scholar of The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society (2017)
• Researcher of the Year, The Pamela B. Katten Memorial Leukemia Research Foundation Award (2014)
• The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society Scholar CDP Achievement Award (2022)
• Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) (2023)

Dr. Chen's research program is supported by multiple R01 grants from the National Cancer Institute. His laboratory actively mentors researchers and has developed several small-molecule inhibitors with strong therapeutic potential in preclinical models. The Chen Laboratory is dedicated to translating fundamental discoveries in RNA and DNA epigenetics into effective clinical therapies for cancer patients.

The laboratory operates within City of Hope's comprehensive cancer center, collaborating with clinical teams to bridge basic research and patient care. Current projects focus on developing prognostic systems for cancer risk stratification and creating targeted therapeutic strategies that inhibit aberrant epigenetic regulators such as FTO, IGF2BP2, YTHDF2, METTL16, and TET1.