Loukia G. Karacosta, Ph.D.
Department of Cancer Systems Imaging, Division of Diagnostic Imaging
Present Title & Affiliation
Primary Appointment
Graduate Faculty, Quantitative Science Program, The University of Texas Health Science Center, Houston, TX
Assistant Professor, Cancer Systems Imaging, Diagnostic Imaging, UT MD Anderson, Houston, Texas
Research Interests
Leveraging cancer systems biology approaches and
single-cell technologies like mass cytometry (CyTOF) and multiplexed imaging,
to interrogate phenotypic plasticity and the spatiotemporal dynamics that drive
therapy resistance in the tumor microenvironment
Education & Training
Degree-Granting Education
| 2013 | School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences University at Buffalo, SUNY, Buffalo, New York, US, Pharmacology and Toxicology, Ph.D |
| 2006 | National & Kapodistrian University of Athens, Athens, GR, Biology, BS |
Postgraduate Training
| 2015-2019 | Postdoctoral Fellow, Stanford University, Stanford, California |
| 2013-2015 | Postdoctoral Fellow, For-Robin Therapeutics, Buffalo, New York |
Experience & Service
Other Professional Positions
Basic Life Research Scientist, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, 2019 - 2020
Honors & Awards
| 2020 - 2023 | UT Rising Star, The University of Texas System |
| 2019 | Best Collaborative Research Project Proposal for a Prospective 1 year funding by the Cancer Systems Biology Consortium/U54 Grant Center, Cancer Systems Biology Consortium/U54 Grant Center, 1st Annual West Coast Symposium |
| 2018 | Scholar in Training Award, AACR Annual Meeting |
| 2017 | Poster Award, Stanford’s Center for Cancer Systems Biology Annual Symposium |
| 2017 | Travel Award, 8th International EMT Meeting |
| 2012 | Invited to attend the ASPET Best Abstract Competition, Experimental Biology 2012 |
| 2012 | Travel Award, ASPET Annual Meeting |
| 2012 | Second Place for Outstanding Poster Presentation among Graduate Students, Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology Mini-Research Symposium |
| 2011 | Allen Barnett Graduate Student Travel Award, Graduate Students at the Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology Mini-Research Symposium |
| 2011 | Poster Award, Sigma Xi Research Day |
| 2011 | Second Place for Oral Presentation, University at Buffalo, Buffalo, NY |
| 2008 | Outstanding Academic Performance Award, Interdisciplinary Graduate Program in Biomedical Sciences, School of Medicine & Biomedical Sciences, University at Buffalo |
Professional Memberships
Selected Presentations & Talks
Local Presentations
- 2026. High-dimensional temporal and spatial views on disease progression and therapy response at the single-cell and patient level. Invited. Houston, Texas, US.
- 2024. Monitoring Therapy Resistance in Longitudinal SCLC Liquid Biopsies with Mass Cytometry. Invited. GCC Single and Spatial Cell Omics Symposium. Houston, TX, US.
- 2024. Mapping EMT and Therapy Resistant Phenotypes in Lung Cancer Primary Tumors & Liquid Biopsies with Mass Cytometry. Invited. University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center.
- 2017. Identifying Dynamic EMT Transition States and Constructing a Proteomic EMT Landscape of Lung Cancer Using Single-Cell Multidimensional Analysis. Invited. The 8th International EMT Meeting. Houston, TX, US.
National Presentations
- 2026. Tracking CTC Plasticity in SCLC Patient Liquid Biopsies: Assessing Therapy Response and Disease Progression at A Personalized Level Using Single-Cell Mass Cytometry. Invited. Gordon Research Conference on Single-cell Cancer Biology. Ventura, CA, US.
- 2025. Assessing Therapy Resistance with Mass Cytometry Profiling of CTCs in Lung Cancer Liquid Biopsies. Invited. CYTOF Summit 2025. Denver, Colorado, US.
- 2024. Leveraging mass cytometry for phenotyping CTCs in SCLC liquid biopsies: Tracking therapy resistance at a personalized level. Invited. AACR Special Conference: Liquid Biopsy: From Discovery to Clinical Implementation. San Diego, CA, US.
- 2019. Mapping Lung Cancer Epithelial-Mesenchymal Transition States and Trajectories with Single-Cell Resolution. Invited. Cancer Systems Biology Consortium, 1st Annual West Coast Symposium. Portland, OR, US.
- 2018. Identifying Dynamic EMT States and Constructing a Proteomic EMT Landscape of Lung Cancer Using Single-Cell Multidimensional Analysis. Invited. Stanford Center for Cancer Systems Biology (CCSB). Stanford, CA, US.
- 2018. Identifying dynamic EMT states and constructing a proteomic EMT landscape of lung cancer using single cell multidimensional analysis. Invited. AACR. Chicago, IL, US.
- 2017. Identifying Dynamic EMT Transition States in Lung Cancer Using Single-Cell Multidimensional Analysis. Invited. Keystone Symposium. Big Sky, MT, US.
International Presentations
- 2024. Leveraging Single-Cell Proteomics for Mapping Therapy Resistant Phenotypes in the Tumor Microenvironment of Lung Cancer Liquid Biopsies. Invited. Tumor Microenvironment and Cell Stress Conference. Paphos, CY.
- 2023. Mapping EMT and Therapy Resistant Phenotypes in Lung Cancer Tumors and Liquid Biopsies with Single-cell Proteomics. Invited. CyBioS Mini Symposium 2023 - CancerNow: From Benchside to Clinical Applications. Nicosia, CY.
- 2022. Evidence of an MET state in liquid biopsies of late-stage NSCLC patients. Invited. TEMTIA X. Paris, FR.
- 2020. Power of One: Using Single Cells to Understand the Tumor-Immune Micro-environment. Invited. ASCO 2020 Virtual Education Program. Alexandria, US.
- 2019. A Single-Cell Resolution Map of EMT and Drug Resistance States for Evaluating NSCLC Clinical Specimens. Invited. World Conference on Lung Cancer. Barcelona, ES.
- 2019. A Single-Cell Resolution Map of EMT and Drug Resistance States in NSCLC. Invited. 2019 Annual Meeting and Conference of the Society for Mathematical Biology (SMB). Montreal, CA.
Formal Peers
- 2026. High-dimensional views on disease progression and therapy response at the single-cell and patient level: Harnessing the power of liquid biopsies for precision oncology. Houston, Texas, US.
- 2026. Tracking CTC plasticity in SCLC patient liquid biopsies: Leveraging single-cell proteomics for assessing therapy response and disease progression at a personalized level. Houston, Texas, US.
- 2024. Mapping EMT and Therapy Resistant Phenotypes in Patient Tumors and Liquid Biopsies with CyTOF and Systems Biology Approaches. Houston, Texas, US.
- 2023. Leveraging Single-Cell Proteomics and Systems Biology Approaches for Mapping EMT and Therapy Resistant Phenotypes in Cancer Specimens at a Personalized Level. Invited. College, TX, US.
- 2022. Leveraging Single-Cell Proteomics for Mapping Therapy-Driven Phenotypes in Solid Tumors and Liquid Biopsies from Cancer Patients. Invited. Bengaluru, IN.
- 2022. Constructing Single-cell Proteomic Maps for Assessing Disease Progression and Therapy Response in Lung Cancer Patients. Invited. London, GB.
- 2022. Dissecting Phenotypic Plasticity in the Lung Tumor Microenvironment One Cell at a Time. Invited. Buffalo, NY, US.
- 2021. Mapping Dynamic Phenotypic States in Lung Cancer using CyTOF: In Depth Views on Epithelial-Mesenchymal Transition and Drug Resistance. Invited. Nicosia, CY.
- 2019. Constructing a Phenotypic State Map for Assessing Disease Progression and Therapy Response in Lung Cancer: Lessons from Dynamic Single-Cell Analysis. Invited. Houston, Texas, US.
- 2019. Mapping Lung Cancer Phenotypic States using CyTOF: In Depth Insights on Epithelial-Mesenchymal Transition and Drug Resistance. Invited. Buffalo, NY, US.
Selected Publications
Peer-Reviewed Articles
- Aiko Yamaguchi, Ryan P Coll, Jianbo Wang, Seong-Woo Bae, Ha Tran, Beibei Huang, Tomoyuki Mashimo, F William Schuler, Susanne Je-Han Lin, Shilpa Sharma, Sanjana Dhakshinamoorthy, Robert T Ta, Dimitra K Georgiou, Karacosta LG, Shabnam Malik, Sheema Khan, Murali M Yallapu, Scott Koptez, Subhash C Chauhan, H Charles Manning. Glycoprotein mucin 13 expression as a theranostic target in colorectal cancer. Clin Cancer Res, 2026. e-Pub 2026. PMID: 42149121.
- C Allison Stewart, Kavya Ramkumar, Runsheng Wang, Yuanxin Xi, Alexa Halliday, Lixia Diao, Qi Wang, Alejandra Serrano, Sarah Groves, Simon Heeke, Azusa Tanimoto, Laura Kaiser, Whitney Lewis, Mukulika Bose, Pedro Da Rocha, Karacosta LG, Vito Quaranta, Jing Wang, Julie George, Luisa Maren Solis Soto, Bingnan Zhang, John V Heymach, Lauren A Byers, Carl M Gay. YAP1 defines an emergent, plastic population of relapsed small cell lung cancer. J Thorac Oncol. e-Pub 2026. PMID: 42019833.
- Bose M, Ruoff C, Ehsan S, Stewart CA, Duarte A Jr, Bhattacharyya S, Li J, Benedict A, Welte T, Victorian A, Lujan FE, Diao L, Wang J, Chen K, Zhang B, Wang R, Soto LS, Serrano AG, Cardnell R, Gay CM, Byers LA, Karacosta LG. CyTOF-based profiling of circulating tumor cells predicts aggressiveness and therapy response in SCLC liquid biopsies at a personalized level. bioRxiv, 2025. e-Pub 2025. PMID: 41446220.
- Karacosta LG, Pancirer D, Preiss JS, Benson JA, Trope W, Shrager JB, Sung AW, Neal JW, Bendall SC, Wakelee H, Plevritis SK. Phenotyping EMT and MET cellular states in lung cancer patient liquid biopsies at a personalized level using mass cytometry. Sci Rep 13(1):21781, 2023. e-Pub 2023. PMID: 38065965.
- Adler FR, Anderson ARA, Bhushan A, Bogdan P, Bravo-Cordero JJ, Brock A, Chen Y, Cukierman E, DelGiorno KE, Denis GV, Ferrall-Fairbanks MC, Gartner ZJ, Germain RN, Gordon DM, Hunter G, Jolly MK, Karacosta LG, Mythreye K, Katira P, Kulkarni RP, Kutys ML, Lander AD, Laughney AM, Levine H, Lou E, Lowenstein PR, Masters KS, Pe'er D, Peyton SR, Platt MO, Purvis JE, Quon G, Richer JK, Riddle NC, Rodriguez A, Snyder JC, Lee Szeto G, Tomlin CJ, Yanai I, Zervantonakis IK, Dueck H. Modeling collective cell behavior in cancer: Perspectives from an interdisciplinary conversation. Cell Syst 14(4):252-257, 2023. e-Pub 2023. PMID: 37080161.
- Bhattacharyya S, Ehsan SF, Karacosta LG. Phenotypic maps for precision medicine: a promising systems biology tool for assessing therapy response and resistance at a personalized level. Front Netw Physiol 3:1256104, 2023. e-Pub 2023. PMID: 37964768.
- Ghazal D, Zalzala F, Fisk JC, Tati S, Karacosta LG, Morey S, Olson JR, Quataert S, Dy GK, Rittenhouse-Olson K. Therapeutic efficacy of the humanized JAA-F11 anti-Thomsen-Friedenreich antibody constructs H2aL2a and H3L3 in human breast and lung cancer xenograft models. Oncotarget 13:1155-1164, 2022. e-Pub 2022. PMID: 36264086.
- Bouchard G, Garcia-Marques F, Karacosta LG, Zhang W, Bermudez A, Riley N, Mehl L, Benson J, Shrager J, Bertozzi C, Pitteri S, Giaccia A, Plevritis S. Multi-Omics Analysis of Fibroblasts from the Invasive Tumor Edge Reveals that Tumor-Stroma Crosstalk Induces O-glycosylation of the CDK4-pRB Axis. Cancer Research 82(4):648-664, 2021. e-Pub 2021. PMID: 34853070.
- Karacosta LG. From imaging a single cell to implementing precision medicine: an exciting new era. Emerg Top Life Sci 5(6):837-847, 2021. e-Pub 2021. PMID: 3488944.
- Karacosta LG, Anchang B, Ignatiadis N, Kimmey SC, Benson JA, Shrager JB, Tibshirani R, Bendall SC, Plevritis SK. Mapping lung cancer epithelial-mesenchymal transition states and trajectories with single-cell resolution. Nat Commun 10(1):5587, 2019. e-Pub 2019. PMID: 31811131.
- Menden MP, Wang D, Mason MJ, Szalai B, Bulusu KC, Guan Y, Yu T, Kang J, Jeon M, Wolfinger R, Nguyen T, Zaslavskiy M, DREAM Consortium ADC, Karacosta LG, Jang IS, Ghazoui Z, Ahsen ME, Vogel R, Chaibub Neto E, Norman T, Tang EKY, Garnett MJ, Di Veroli DY, Fawell S, Stolovitzky G, Guinney J, Dry JR, Saez-Rodriguez J. Community assessment to advance computational prediction of cancer drug combinations in a pharmacogenomic screen. Nat Commun 10(1):2674, 2019. e-Pub 2019. PMID: 31209238.
- Tati S, Fisk JC, Abdullah J, Karacosta L, Chrisikos T, Philbin P, Morey S, Ghazal D, Zazala F, Jessee J, Quataert S, Koury S, Moreno D, Eng JY, Glinsky VV, Glinskii OV, Sesay M, Gebhard AW, Birthare K, Olson JR, Rittenhouse-Olson K. Corrigendum to "Humanization of JAA-F11, a Highly Specific Anti-Thomsen-Friedenreich Pancarcinoma Antibody and In Vitro Efficacy Analysis". Neoplasia 19(9):716-733, 2018. e-Pub 2018. PMID: 29277397.
- Anchang B, Davis KL, Fienberg HG, Williamson BD, Bendall SC, Karacosta LG, Tibshirani R, Nolan GP, Plevritis SK. DRUG-NEM: Optimizing drug combinations using single-cell perturbation response to account for intratumoral heterogeneity. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 115(18):E4294-E4303, 2018. e-Pub 2018. PMID: 29654148.
- Karacosta LG, Fisk JC, Jessee J, Tati S, Turner B, Ghazal D, Ludwig R, Johnson H, Adams J, Sajjad M, Koury S, Roy R, Olson JR, Rittenhouse-Olson K. Preclinical Analysis of JAA-F11, a Specific Anti-Thomsen-Friedenreich Antibody via Immunohistochemistry and In Vivo Imaging. Transl Oncol 11(2):450-466, 2018. e-Pub 2018. PMID: 29477636.
- Tati S, Fisk JC, Abdullah J, Karacosta LG, Chrisikos T, Philbin P, Morey S, Ghazal D, Zazala F, Jessee J, Quataert S, Koury S, Moreno D, Eng JY, Glinsky VV, Glinskii OV, Sesay M, Gebhard AW, Birthare K, Olson JR, Rittenhouse-Olson K. Humanization of JAA-F11, a Highly Specific Anti-Thomsen-Friedenreich Pancarcinoma Antibody and In Vitro Efficacy Analysis. Neoplasia 19(9):716-733, 2017. e-Pub 2017. PMID: 28830009.
- Toumazis I, Kurt M, Toumazi A, Karacosta LG, Kwon C. Comparative Effectiveness of Up-to-Three Lines of Chemotherapy Treatment Plans for Metastatic Colorectal Cancer. MDM Policy & Practice 2(2), 2017. e-Pub 2017. PMID: 30288431.
- Gocher AM, Azabdaftari G, Euscher LM, Dai S, Karacosta LG, Franke TF, Edelman AM. Akt activation by Ca2+/calmodulin-dependent protein kinase kinase 2 (CaMKK2) in ovarian cancer cells. J Biol Chem 292(34):14188-14204, 2017. e-Pub 2017. PMID: 28634229.
- Karacosta LG, Kuroski LA, Hofmann WA, Azabdaftari G, Mastri M, Gocher AM, Dai S, Hoste AJ, Edelman AM. Nucleoporin 62 and Ca(2+)/calmodulin dependent kinase kinase 2 regulate androgen receptor activity in castrate resistant prostate cancer cells. Prostate 76(3):294-306, 2016. e-Pub 2016. PMID: 26552607.
- Karacosta LG, Foster BA, Azabdaftari G, Feliciano DM, Edelman AM. A Regulatory Feedback Loop Between Ca2+/Calmodulin-Dependent Protein Kinase Kinase 2 (CaMKK2) and the Androgen Receptor in Prostate Cancer Progression. Journal of Biological Chemistry (JBC) 287(29):24832-24842, 2012. e-Pub 2012. PMID: 22654108.
Abstracts
- A. Stewart, K. Ramkumar, R. Wang, Y. Yang, B. Zhang, A. Halliday, Y. Xi, L. Diao, Q. Wang, A. Duarte, P. Li, A. Tanimoto, A. Serrano, J. Vykoukal, M. Bose, L. Karacosta, L.M.S. Soto, S. Hanash, J. Wang, J.V. Heymatch, L.A. Byers, C.M. Gay. P3.13.09 Surface Targeting Strategies to Overcome Heterogeneity Associated With Treatment Resistance in Small Cell Lung Cancer (SCLC). Journal of Thoracic Oncology 20(10):1, 2025. e-Pub 2025.
- M. Bose, C. Ruoff, C.A. Stewart, S. Bhattacharyya, A. Victorian, R. Wang, A. Duarte, S. Eshan, F.E. Lujan, R. Cardnell, C.M. Gay, L.A. Byers, Karacosta LG. P2.06.84 Tracking Ctc Phenotypes in SCLC Liquid Biopsies as a Diagnostic and Therapy Response Assessment Tool. Journal of Thoracic Oncology 20(10):1, 2025. e-Pub 2025.
- Bose, M, Stewart, C, Victorian, A, Wang, R, Duarte, A, Eshan, S, Lujan, F, Cardnell, R, Gay, C, Byers, L, Karacosta LG. Evaluating Therapeutic Marker Expression and EMT Heterogeneity in Circulating Tumor Cells from SCLC Liquid Biopsies using Mass Cytometry. Thoracic Onc 20(8):S27, 2025.
- Stewart C, Ramkumar K, Wang R, Yang Y, Zhang B, Halliday A, Xi Y, Diao L, Wang Q, Duarte A, Li P, Tanimoto A, Serrano A, Vykoukal J, Bose M, Karacosta L, Soto LS, Hanash S, Wang J, Heymach JV, Gay CM. Combination Surface Targeting Strategies in Relapsed Small Cell Lung Cancer (SCLC) to Overcome Intratumoral Heterogeneity Associated with Treatment Resistance. Journal of Thoracic Oncology 20(8, Supplement 2):S35-S36, 2025. e-Pub 2025.
- C Allison Stewart, Kavya Ramkumar, Runsheng Wang, Yan Yang, Bingnan Zhang, Yuanxin Xi, Lixia Diao, Qi Wang, Alberto Duarte, Ping Li, Azusa Tanimoto, Alejandra G Serrano, Jody Vykoukal, Mukulika Bose, Karacosta LG, Luisa Solis Soto, Samir Hanish, Jing Wang, John H Heymach, Lauren Averett Byers, Carl M Gay. Combination surface targeting strategies in relapsed small cell lung cancer (SCLC) to overcome intratumoral heterogeneity associated with treatment resistance. American Association for Cancer Research 85(8_Supplement_1):2928-2928, 2025. e-Pub 2025.
- Loukia G Karacosta, Bhattacharyya S, Stewart A, Victorian A, Lujan EF, Ehsan S, Kim S, Duarte A, Wang R, Anchang B, Wang J, Byers L. Leveraging mass cytometry for phenotyping CTCs in SCLC liquid biopsies: Tracking therapy resistance at a personalized level. Clin Cancer Res 30(21 Supplement), 2024. e-Pub 2024.
- Stewart C, Groves SM, Wang R, Ramkumar K, Xi Y, Diao L, Serrano AG, Tanimoto A, Victorian AM, Bhattacharyya S, Halliday AJ, Kalhor N, Soto LM, DaRocha PF, Vokes N, Karacosta LG, Wang J, Heymach JV, Quaranta V, Glisson B, Byers A, Gay CM. YAP1 defines a highly plastic, persister cell population in small cell lung cancer (SCLC) following relapse. Cancer Research, 2024. e-Pub 2024.
- Bhattacharyya S, Stewart CA, Victorian AM, Ehsan SF, Lujan EF, Duarte A, Heymach JV, Wang J, Byers LA, LGKaracosta LG. Mapping therapy resistant phenotypes in SCLC liquid biopsies with single-cell proteomics at a personalized level. Molecular Cancer Therapeutics 22(12 Supplement):LB B05, 2023. e-Pub 2023.
- Karacosta LG, Pancier D, Preiss J, Shranger JB, Sung AW, Neal JW, Bendall SC, Wakelee H, Plevritis SK. Phenotyping Malignant Pleural Effusions with Mass Cytometry: Evidence of EMT and MET States in Late-Stage NSCLC 17(9 Supplement):S577-S578, 2022. e-Pub 2022.
- Karacosta LG, Anchang B, Ignatiadis N, Kimmey SC, Benson JA, Shrager JA, Tibshirani R, Bendall SC, Plevritis SK. A Single-Cell Resolution Map of EMT and Drug Resistance States for Evaluating NSCLC Clinical Specimens. Journal Thoracic Oncology 14(10):S226-S227, 2019. e-Pub 2019.
- Anchang B, Davis K, Fienberg H, Bendall S, Karacosta LG, Nolan G, Plevritis SK. Individualized drug combination based on single-cell drug perturbations. Cancer Research 78(13 Supplement):2275, 2018. e-Pub 2018.
- Karacosta LG, Anchang B, Kimmey S, van de Rijn M, Shrager JB, Bendall SC, Plevritis SK. Identifying dynamic EMT states and constructing a proteomic EMT landscape of lung cancer using single cell multidimensional analysis. Cancer Research 78(13 Supplement):4997, 2018. e-Pub 2018.
- Karacosta LG, Johnson H, Abdullah J, Chrisikos T, Ludwig R, Turner B, Tati S, Ghazal D, Sajjad M, Koury S, Morey S, Adams J, Rittenhouse-Olson K. Immunohistochemistry and radioimaging with hJAA-11 antibody to the Thomsen-Friedenreich antigen: Potential theranostic application for breast cancer. Cancer Research 76(14 Supplement):576, 2016. e-Pub 2016.
- Gocher AM, Azabdaftari G, Karacosta LG, Franke TF, Edelman AM. CaMKK2 activates oncogenic Akt in ovarian cancer cells and is a promising therapeutic target. FASEB Journal 30(1 Supplement):714.8, 2016. e-Pub 2016.
- Gocher AM, Franke TF, Azabdaftari G, Karacosta LG, Edelman AM. Regulation of Akt activity, cell proliferation and viability in ovarian cancer cells by Ca2+/Calmodulin-dependent protein kinase kinase 2. Molecular Cancer Therapeutics 14(7), 2015. e-Pub 2015.
- Karacosta LG, Foster BA, Azabdaftari G, Feliciano DM, Edelman AM. CaMKK2 regulates cellular proliferation and androgen receptor activity during prostate cancer progression. Cancer Research 72(4):A10, 2012. e-Pub 2012.
Book Chapters
- Benedict Anchang, Karacosta LG. Decoding drug resistance at a single-cell level using systems-level approaches. In: Cancer Systems Biology: Translational Mathematical Oncology. Oxford University Press, 105-114, 2025.
Patient Reviews
CV information above last modified August 24, 2026