Jacob Corn is the Professor of Genome Biology at ETH Zürich. His research aims to bring about the end of genetic disease through the development and application of next-generation genome editing technologies. In his spare time, Jacob enjoys long backpacking trips and rock climbing. You can find Jacob on Twitter and LinkedIn. 

Steve Jackson FRS, FMedSci is University of Cambridge Professor of Biology, and Senior Group Leader at the Cancer Research UK Cambridge Institute, University of Cambridge.  His research has identified many key principles by which cells respond to and repair DNA damage. This work identified many DNA repair proteins, established how they function, and showed how their dysfunction yields cancer and other age-related diseases. 

To translate his work towards patient benefit, Steve has founded/co-founded several biotechnology companies. One of these, KuDOS, generated the PARP inhibitor drug olaparib/LynparzaTM that is marketed worldwide by AstraZeneca for treating certain ovarian and breast cancers. In 2010, Steve founded Mission Therapeutics Ltd. (Babraham, Cambridge) to exploit recent advances in protein ubiquitylation and deubiquitylation to derive new medicines. Steve’s academic laboratory is currently further defining mechanisms of DNA repair and associated processes, with a view to identifying new therapeutic opportunities for cancer as well as various other genetic diseases.

Joanna completed her undergraduate studies in the UK, moving there from Cyprus. Subsequently, she commenced PhD work at the University of Manchester, UK, and the Genome  Damage  and Stability Centre at the University of Sussex, UK, investigating mechanisms of DNA single-strand break repair. Postdoctoral work followed at the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), WHO, France where Joanna investigated the regulation and importance of epigenetic modifications in   DNA   repair.   Building   on   this   experience   she   focused   on   the   repair   of endogenously generated breaks in B cells at the London Research Institute (LRI), Cancer Research UK (CR-UK). Joanna established her independent lab in Vienna, Austria at CeMM, where the team investigates the mechanisms by which cells respond to – and repair – DNA damage to maintain genomic stability and suppress disease. In 2020, Joanna and her team moved to the Medical University of Vienna.

As of 15 August 2022, Joanna took up a new position at AstraZeneca as Director of Translational Medicine in Early Oncology in Cambridge UK. Through her advisory role, Joanna will continue to promote the DDREAMM project advancement.

Lena Kobel received her Master’s degree in Cell Biology from the ETH Zürich in 2017. In her Master thesis she focused on generating stable mammalian cell lines using CRISPR-Cas9 in the lab of Prof. Martin Jinek at the University of Zürich, where she then worked for another 1.5 years as a technician. After that, she worked as an intern at Caribou Biosciences, Inc., in Berkeley for 6 months on a project focused on the development of CAR-T cell therapies. Lena joined the Corn lab as a Cell Line Engineer in March 2020.

I am a Senior Research Associate with Prof. Steve Jackson at the Cancer Research UK Cambridge Institute, University of Cambridge. Originally from Israel, I completed my PhD in 2005 on ATM and the COP9- signalosome in the DDR at Tel-Aviv Medical School with Prof. Yossi Shiloh. I then joined Prof. Steve Jackson’s lab as a postdoctoral researcher, where I spearheaded projects exploring the role of ubiquitin and other UBLs (ubiquitin-like proteins) in DDR signalling and repair. In 2009, following seminal publications on the roles of SUMO in the DDR, I accepted a permanent position as a senior research associate in the lab. Since then I have supervised research projects, graduate and undergraduate students,   while continuing with my own research projects and spearhead the introduction of CRISPR technology to the lab.

John received his PhD in Oncology from the University of Oxford in 2020, working with Prof. Kristijan Ramadan on the molecular mechanisms of DNA-protein crosslink repair. John joined the Corn Lab as a postdoctoral researcher in October 2020, where he is using CRISPR-Cas9-based screening approaches to identify genetic interactions that can be exploited in cancer therapy.

Simon is a postdoctoral bioinformatician at Cancer Research UK Cambridge Institute, University of Cambridge. He completed his PhD at King’s College London where he constructed mathematical models of metabolism in human diseases. Simon’s research is focused on nucleotide metabolism in DDR as well as cancer multi-omics and CRISPR screen library design. His wider research interests includeexecutable biology, computational biology, and machine learning. 

Eric received his PhD in Biochemistry, Molecular Biology, and Biophysics from the University of Minnesota in 2020 in the lab of Dr. Wendy Gordon developing improved genome editing technologies, including a Cas-DNA tethering platform. In November 2020, Eric joined the Corn Lab as a postdoc interested in studying synthetic lethalities and viabilities in DNA repair utilizing CRISPR.

Tuan-Anh has a BSc degree in Mathematics and Computer Science with Honours from the University of Science, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. He worked as a Data Coordinator at the Oxford University Clinical Research Unit (OUCRU) for one year before moving to France to do his MSc in Molecular Nano- and Bio-photonics at the École Normale Supérieure Paris-Saclay. After completing a PhD in Clinical Medicine at the University of Oxford, he joined the Jackson group as a Postdoctoral Bioinformatician 

David received his PhD in Biochemistry from the University of Cambridge in 2022 under the supervision of Prof. Steve Jackson. His work focused on identifying functional genetic inter-actions within the DNA damage response through CRISPR-Cas9 screens. David joined the Corn Lab as a post doctoral researcher in October 2022. His research interests include DNA repair, CRISPR-Cas9 technologies, genetic screening, and therapeutic gene editing.

For the past 7 years I was a lab manager and research assistant in Petra Beli’s lab in Mainz, using quantitative proteomics approaches to study the DNA damage response. I am excited to join the DDREAMM project in the Jackson lab as a research assistant. 

Ana joined the Corn Lab as a Program Manager in September 2022. She will contribute to scientifi c management on several fronts, including national and international collaborative projects. She received her PhD in Cancer Biology at the University of Zurich and has a strong track record as an independent group leader. Most recently she was a clinical scientist in industry.

I joined Steve Jackson’s lab as a postdoc in January 2020. I obtained my PhD degree investigating how DSBs generated by topoisomerase II are repaired in different genetic backgrounds and what are the consequences for the genome stability. I’m interested in studying molecular mechanisms of the DNA damage response and its interplay with topoisomerases, as well as using CRISPR-Cas9 technology to identify unknown factors involved in these processes.

Benedetta Bellinazzi received her MSc degree in Medical Biotechnology from San Raffaele University (Milan, Italy) in 2023. Benedetta joined the Corn Lab as a PhD student in January 2024, to acquire new knowledge on DNA damage repair mechanisms after genome editing. Her research interests include CRISPR evolution and its applications across various fields, ranging from basic research to molecular medicine.

Research Assistant

Jordan joined the Jackson lab as a PhD in January 2023. His project focuses on probing DDR gene-drug interactions using titratable CRISPRi. Previous to this, Jordan was a student at the Loizou lab, Medical University of Vienna and worked as a research technician at the Stankovic lab, University of Birmingham.