Quantum-Accelerated Therapeutics: Disrupting Oncogenic Mitochondrial microRNAs in Cancer
BY DR. ILYAS YILDIRIM, DR. SHAILAJA ALLANI, AND DR. AJAY BOMMAREDDY
Keywords: cancer biology, computational chemistry, rna biology, drug design, quantum computing
OUR RESEARCH
Mitochondrial dysfunction plays a crucial role in disrupting cellular energy production and driving aggressive tumor growth across multiple cancers. Mitochondrial microRNAs (mitoMiRs) have emerged as key regulators of these metabolic pathways, making them highly valuable targets for novel therapeutic interventions. This VIP project integrates RNA structural biology, advanced computational methods, and experimental cancer biology to develop targeted small-molecule inhibitors that disrupt mitoMiR maturation and impair tumor survival.
Operating across FAU’s Jupiter and Boca Raton campuses, our interdisciplinary team bridges bioinformatics, computational modeling, quantum computing, and wet-lab pharmacology. By combining high-performance computing with Florida's first on-campus quantum computer, the D-Wave Advantage2 quantum annealing system at FAU, students model complex RNA structures, screen chemical libraries, and test top therapeutic candidates in human cancer cell lines.
OUR STRATEGY
Students on this team engage in a multi-tiered research workflow tailored to their experience level:
- Bioinformatics & Data Mining: Mine public multi-omics datasets (TCGA, miRBase, MirGeneDB) to identify and prioritize pathogenic mitoMiRs correlated with specific cancer phenotypes.
- Quantum & Molecular Modeling: Utilize FAU’s High-Performance Computing (HPC) clusters and D-Wave quantum interface to execute molecular dynamics simulations (AMBER package) and perform quantum-accelerated virtual screening of FDA-approved chemical scaffolds.
- Experimental Bench Validation: Conduct hands-on wet-lab assays, including cell culture maintenance, 3D tumor spheroid generation, qPCR, and metabolic profiling, to test candidate drug efficacy.
- Interdisciplinary Collaboration: Learn to bridge computational predictions with physical biological outcomes while working in cross-functional, multi-campus sub-teams.
OUR IMPACT
This project seeks to:
- Accelerated Therapeutic Discovery: Leverages cutting-edge quantum computational pipelines to rapidly identify and optimize novel drug candidates targeting previously undruggable RNA motifs.
- Translational Cancer Research: Bridges in silico predictions with in vitro validation to generate preclinical data targeting aggressive, high-mortality cancers.
- Workforce Pipeline Development: Trains the next generation of biophysicists, computational biologists, and medical researchers through a multi-tiered peer mentorship pipeline (Freshmen through Graduate/Medical levels).
Transforming quantum algorithms and RNA structural biology into real-world cancer therapies while preparing FAU undergraduates for top-tier STEM careers.
OUR TEAM
Ilyas Yildirim, PhD
Shailaja Allani, PhD
Ajay Bommareddy, PhD
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