בסטר - פקולטה לביולוגיה Biology Faculty

Education/ Resume:

Education/ Resume:

INSTITUTION AND LOCATION	DEGREE (if applicable)	END DATE MM/YYYY	FIELD OF STUDY
The Hebrew University, Jerusalem, Israel	BS	10/2003	Biology
The Hebrew University, Jerusalem, Israel	MS	10/2005	Genetics
The Hebrew University, Jerusalem, Israel	PhD	10/2012	Human Genetics
The Hebrew University, Jerusalem, Israel	Postdoc	02/2014	Human Genetics
Harvard Medical School, Boston, US	Postdoc	02/2019	Human Genetics

Research Summary

The function of 98 percent of the human genome is poorly understood, and it is known as the dark matter of the genome. The unknown genome limits our ability ‎ to understand, diagnose, and treat complex genetic diseases such as cancer, cardiovascular disease, and ‎Alzheimer's. Studying the dark matter of the genome allows for better precision ‎medicine and therapeutic approaches based on the unique genetics of the patient, resulting in improved and more effective treatments.

In our lab, we are developing platforms that enable us to study, in parallel, thousands of ‎genomic elements in micro-experiments via functional screening. Our studies focus on the function of the non-coding genome in blood cancer and cardiovascular ‎diseases. Our recent study identified ‎novel genes located in the dark matter of the genome that play a critical role in cancer. By applying genetic ‎tools such as gene editing (CRISPR) and robotic platforms, we are able to study these new genes with the aim to develop innovative ‎diagnostic and therapeutic tools to treat cancer in a much more effective and specific manner that is currently available.‎

קרא עוד

Awards

2014 EMBO Long-Term Fellowship, EMBO
2013 Fulbright Scholar award, Fulbright award of the United States-Israel Educational Foundation (USIEF).

Key Publications

Daphna Nachmani, Anne H. Bothmer, Silvia Grisendi, Aldo Mele, Dietmar Bothmer, Jonathan D. Lee, Emanuele Monteleone, Ke Cheng, Yang Zhang, Assaf C. Bester, Alison Guzzetti, Caitlin A. Mitchell, Lourdes M. Mendez, Olga Pozdnyakova, Paolo Sportoletti, Maria-Paola Martelli, Tom J Vulliamy, Modi Safra, Schraga Schwartz, Lucio Luzzatto, Olivier Bluteau, Jean Soulier, Robert B. Darnell, Brunangelo Falini, Inderjeet Dokal, Keisuke Ito, John G. Clohessy, Pier Paolo Pandolfi. 2019. "Germline NPM1 mutations lead to altered rRNA 2′-O-methylation and cause dyskeratosis congenita." Nat Genet 51(10):1518-1529.
Yu-Ru Lee, Ming Chen, Jonathan D. Lee, Jinfang Zhang, Shu-Yu Lin, Tian-Min Fu, Hao Chen, Tomoki Ishikawa, Shang-Yin Chiang, Jesse Katon, Yang Zhang, Yulia V Shulga, Assaf C. Bester, Jacqueline Fung, Emanuele Monteleone, Lixin Wan, Chen Shen, Chih-Hung Hsu, Antonella Papa, John G. Clohessy, Julie Teruya-Feldstein, Suresh Jain, Hao Wu, Lydia Matesic, Ruey-Hwa Chen, Wenyi Wei, and Pier Paolo Pandolfi. 2019. "Reactivation of PTEN Tumor Suppressor for Cancer Treatment through Inhibition of a MYC-WWP1 Inhibitory Pathway." Science 364(6441):eaau0159.

Assaf C. Bester., Jonathan D. Lee, Alejandro Chavez, Yu-Ru Lee, Daphna Nachmani, Suhani Vora, Joshua Victor, Martin Sauvageau, Emanuele Monteleone, John L. Rinn, Paolo Provero, George M. Church, John G. Clohessy, and Pier Paolo Pandolfi. 2018. "An Integrated Genome-Wide CRISPRa Approach to Functionalize LncRNAs in Drug Resistance." Cell 173(3):649-664.e20.
Ben-David, Eyal*, Assaf C. Bester*, Sagiv Shifman, and Batsheva Kerem. 2014. "Transcriptional Dynamics in Colorectal Carcinogenesis: New Insights into the Role of c-Myc and MiR-17 in Benign to Cancer Transformation." Cancer Research 0008-5472.CAN-14-0932-.
equal contribution
Assaf C. Bester., Maayan Roniger, Yifat S. Oren, Michael M. Im, Dan Sarni, Malka Chaoat, Aaron Bensimon, Gideon Zamir, Donna S. Shewach, and Batsheva Kerem. 2011. "Nucleotide Deficiency Promotes Genomic Instability in Early Stages of Cancer Development." Cell 145(3):435–46.

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Recent Publications

Jordan P. Lewandowski, Gabrijela Dumbović, Audrey R. Watson, Taeyoung Hwang, Emily Jacobs-Palmer, ‎Nydia Chang, Christian Much, Kyle M. Turner, Christopher Kirby, Nimrod D. Rubinstein, Abigail F. Groff, ‎Steve C. Liapis, Chiara Gerhardinger, Assaf C. Bester, Pier Paolo Pandolfi, John G. Clohessy, Hopi E. ‎Hoekstra, Martin Sauvageau, John L. Rinn‎. 2020. "The Tug1 lncRNA locus is essential for male fertility." Genome Biol. Sep 7;21(1):237.
Daphna Nachmani, Anne H. Bothmer, Silvia Grisendi, Aldo Mele, Dietmar Bothmer, Jonathan D. Lee, Emanuele Monteleone, Ke Cheng, Yang Zhang, Assaf C. Bester, Alison Guzzetti, Caitlin A. Mitchell, Lourdes M. Mendez, Olga Pozdnyakova, Paolo Sportoletti, Maria-Paola Martelli, Tom J Vulliamy, Modi Safra, Schraga Schwartz, Lucio Luzzatto, Olivier Bluteau, Jean Soulier, Robert B. Darnell, Brunangelo Falini, Inderjeet Dokal, Keisuke Ito, John G. Clohessy, Pier Paolo Pandolfi. 2019. "Germline NPM1 mutations lead to altered rRNA 2′-O-methylation and cause dyskeratosis congenita." Nat Genet 51(10):1518-1529

Yu-Ru Lee, Ming Chen, Jonathan D. Lee, Jinfang Zhang, Shu-Yu Lin, Tian-Min Fu, Hao Chen, Tomoki Ishikawa, Shang-Yin Chiang, Jesse Katon, Yang Zhang, Yulia V Shulga, Assaf C. Bester, Jacqueline Fung, Emanuele Monteleone, Lixin Wan, Chen Shen, Chih-Hung Hsu, Antonella Papa, John G. Clohessy, Julie Teruya-Feldstein, Suresh Jain, Hao Wu, Lydia Matesic, Ruey-Hwa Chen, Wenyi Wei, and Pier Paolo Pandolfi. 2019. "Reactivation of PTEN Tumor Suppressor for Cancer Treatment through Inhibition of a MYC-WWP1 Inhibitory Pathway." Science 364(6441):eaau0159.
Assaf C. Bester., Jonathan D. Lee, Alejandro Chavez, Yu-Ru Lee, Daphna Nachmani, Suhani Vora, Joshua Victor, Martin Sauvageau, Emanuele Monteleone, John L. Rinn, Paolo Provero, George M. Church, John G. Clohessy, and Pier Paolo Pandolfi. 2018. "An Integrated Genome-Wide CRISPRa Approach to Functionalize LncRNAs in Drug Resistance." Cell 173(3):649-664.e20.
Zarringhalam, K., Y. Tay, P. Kulkarni, Assaf C. Bester, P. P. Pandolfi, and R. V. Kulkarni. 2017. "Identification of Competing Endogenous RNAs of the Tumor Suppressor Gene PTEN: A Probabilistic Approach." Scientific Reports 7(1).
Lamm, Noa, Karin Maoz, Assaf C. Bester, Michael M. Im, Donna S. Shewach, Rotem Karni, and Batsheva Kerem. 2015. "Folate Levels Modulate Oncogene-Induced Replication Stress and Tumorigenicity." EMBO Molecular Medicine 7(9):e201404824.
Ben-David, Eyal, Assaf C. Bester, Sagiv Shifman, and Batsheva Kerem. 2014. "Transcriptional Dynamics in Colorectal Carcinogenesis: New Insights into the Role of c-Myc and MiR-17 in Benign to Cancer Transformation." Cancer Research 0008-5472.CAN-14-0932-.

קרא עוד

Open Positions

The Bester lab uses cutting-edge genetics and functional genomics to understand the human genome's organization and the role of the non-coding genome in development and cancer. We are looking for passionate and talented MSc, Ph.D. students, and postdocs. Candidates should have a strong background in genetics, molecular biology, functional screening, or bioinformatics.

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