Dr. Mia Petljak

Biography

Mia Petljak is an Assistant Professor at the Perlmutter Cancer Center and specializes in the genomics of cancer and age-related diseases. Her research focuses on understanding how DNA mutations accumulate in cells, driving cell expansion in tissues and contributing to cancer and non-malignant age-related diseases. The laboratory investigates the mechanisms behind DNA mutations and aims to develop new therapies and preventative strategies targeting these underlying causes. With a multidisciplinary team composed of clinical, computational, and basic biology scientists, the lab operates at the interface of functional computational genomics, multi-omics, cell molecular biology, and genomic epidemiology. They integrate computational analyses of large-scale DNA sequencing datasets with experimental research to identify environmental and cell-intrinsic factors that cause DNA mutations and promote cell evolution. The lab employs innovative methods to define genome-wide mutational fingerprints, known as mutational signatures, which link DNA to specific mutational exposures, thereby helping to analyze clinical samples and investigate their relationship with disease and cancer risk prediction.

Research Interests

Experience