Julio C. Morales

Julio C. Morales, PhD serves as Assistant Professor in the Department of Neurosurgery at the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, where he directs the Morales Lab focused on glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) research. With patients facing only 4-10% 5-year survival rates due to therapy resistance and brain metastasis, his work addresses critical gaps in understanding cancer progression mechanisms.

Dr. Morales earned his undergraduate degree at the University of Texas at Austin working with Dr. George B. Kitto on ELISA assays for grain infestation and HIV detection. He completed graduate studies at the University of Texas Health Science Center under Dr. Phillip B. Carpenter investigating 53bp1 and DNA repair pathways, followed by postdoctoral training with Dr. David A. Boothman at UT Southwestern Medical Center where he connected transcription processes with DNA repair mechanisms.

His laboratory specializes in DNA repair efficiency in cancer progression, particularly how tumors upregulate DNA double-stranded break (DSB) repair capacities during treatment. A cornerstone of his research involves XRN2, a 5'-3' exoribonuclease that regulates cancer cell survival during DNA damage events, DSB lesion repair, and pro-metastatic programming in GBMs. The lab employs mouse models, reporter cell lines, invasion assays, and molecular biology techniques to identify therapeutic vulnerabilities in treatment-resistant cancers.

Current research examines R-loop resolution and DNA:RNA hybrid dynamics in therapy resistance, with implications for sensitizing cancer cells through XRN2 inhibition. Dr. Morales collaborates with postdoctoral fellow Dr. Tuyen T. Dang, who investigates molecular regulators of GBM invasion using breast cancer metastasis methodology adapted from her doctoral work.