Featured Publications
Pairwise and higher-order epistatic effects among somatic cancer mutations across oncogenesis
Alfaro-Murillo J, Townsend J. Pairwise and higher-order epistatic effects among somatic cancer mutations across oncogenesis. Mathematical Biosciences 2023, 366: 109091. PMID: 37996064, PMCID: PMC10847963, DOI: 10.1016/j.mbs.2023.109091.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchStrength of selectionEpistatic effectsSelection coefficientsMutation rateHigher-order epistatic effectsLarge mutation ratesLarge selection coefficientsSomatic cancer mutationsUncontrolled cell growthSomatic evolutionMultiple somatic mutationsDriver genesCancer mutationsCancer research communityGenesSomatic genotypeCell growthOncogenesisMutationsSomatic mutationsEvolutionary modelsConsequent trajectoriesCancer genotypesPersonalized cancer therapyMutual exclusivity
2019
APOBEC-induced mutations and their cancer effect size in head and neck squamous cell carcinoma
Cannataro VL, Gaffney SG, Sasaki T, Issaeva N, Grewal NKS, Grandis JR, Yarbrough WG, Burtness B, Anderson KS, Townsend JP. APOBEC-induced mutations and their cancer effect size in head and neck squamous cell carcinoma. Oncogene 2019, 38: 3475-3487. PMID: 30647454, PMCID: PMC6499643, DOI: 10.1038/s41388-018-0657-6.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchConceptsPositive selectionCancer phenotypeStrong positive selectionIntensity of selectionEffects of mutationsBasis of mutationsSomatic genetic variantsSomatic evolutionNeutral driftMutational processesAPOBEC mutagenesisBiochemical experimentsSelection intensityMolecular understandingCytosine basesIndividual substitutionsAPOBEC3B proteinMutant stateMutational signaturesGenetic variantsNeck squamous cell carcinomaMutationsE545KGene variantsPhenotype
2018
Neutral Theory and the Somatic Evolution of Cancer
Cannataro VL, Townsend JP. Neutral Theory and the Somatic Evolution of Cancer. Molecular Biology And Evolution 2018, 35: 1308-1315. PMID: 29684198, PMCID: PMC5967571, DOI: 10.1093/molbev/msy079.Peer-Reviewed Original Research