Liza Leshchiner
About Liza Leshchiner
Liza Leshchiner is a Group Leader at the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, where she leads a functional studies group focused on drug response and resistance in cancer. With a strong academic background and extensive research experience, she has contributed significantly to the understanding of cancer progression and therapeutic resistance.
Current Role at Broad Institute
Liza Leshchiner currently serves as a Group Leader at the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard. She has held this position since 2022. In her role, she leads the functional studies group within a significant $50 million collaboration between Broad and IBM, focusing on drug response and resistance in cancer. Her leadership involves supervising a team of both experimental and computational scientists, working to create a systematic Cancer Resistance Map across various cancer disease areas.
Previous Experience at Broad Institute
Prior to her current role, Liza Leshchiner worked at the Broad Institute as a Research Scientist II from 2021 to 2022 and as a Research Scientist from 2017 to 2020. During her tenure, she conducted in-depth computational genomic analysis and experimental follow-up on novel drivers of cancer and drug resistance, particularly in ovarian, breast, and high-mutational burden cancers.
Academic Background
Liza Leshchiner has a strong academic background in the sciences. She earned her Ph.D. in Chemistry and Chemical Biology from Harvard University, completing her studies from 2007 to 2013. Prior to that, she obtained her M.S. Summa Cum Laude from Moscow State University, studying from 2001 to 2007. Additionally, she spent two years at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, where she worked in the Department of Chemical Engineering under Dr. Robert Langer.
Research Contributions and Collaborations
Liza Leshchiner has made significant contributions to cancer research through various collaborations. She utilized single-cell RNA sequencing to identify unique cell populations in tumor therapeutic response and resistance. She also collaborated with the Termeer Center for Targeted Therapies at Massachusetts General Hospital to characterize novel pathways of cancer progression and resistance in a HR+/HER2- patient cohort. Her work includes identifying novel vulnerabilities in drug-resistant cancers using whole-genome CRISPR screening and compound screens.
Funding and Leadership Roles
In addition to her research, Liza Leshchiner has taken on leadership roles in securing funding for scientific projects. She has served as a Co-Principal Investigator or Co-Investigator on various funding applications, successfully obtaining support for her research initiatives. Her ability to lead and collaborate effectively has been instrumental in advancing cancer research efforts.