Kannanganattu V Prasanth

Kannanganattu V Prasanth is a Professor in the Department of Cell and Developmental Biology at the University of Illinois. His research focuses on long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) and their role in gene regulation, particularly during cancer progression.

His primary research interests include:

• Regulation of Gene Expression
• RNA Biology
• Nuclear domain organization and structure
• Long noncoding RNA mechanisms in cancer

Prasanth's laboratory investigates how nuclear domain-enriched lncRNAs control gene expression through modulation of nuclear domains and associated chromatin structure. His work demonstrates that lncRNAs like MALAT1 regulate vital cellular processes by functioning as 'scaffolds' or 'guides' to modulate protein interactions. He has established connections between nuclear speckle-localized RNAs and cancer progression, showing how MALAT1 depletion reduces tumorigenic properties while its overexpression enhances tumor metastasis.

His recent publications reveal significant findings in lncRNA biology, including characterization of cell cycle-regulated lncRNAs and their role in breast cancer progression, particularly in triple-negative breast cancer. His work on MANCR lncRNA and MALAT1 has provided important insights into RNA-mediated gene regulatory mechanisms.

Prasanth has received several honors including an EAGER NSF award, Research Scholar from the American Cancer Society, and Cancer Center at Illinois seed grants.

His laboratory employs cellular and molecular biological approaches to unravel lncRNA functions in mammalian cells, with particular focus on nuclear speckles, paraspeckles, and nucleolar domains. Current research directions include investigating phase separation mechanisms within nuclear speckles and CRISPR-based approaches to characterize lncRNA functions in cancer cells.