Specializing In:
- Targeted therapeutics
- Resistance to therapies
- Vitamin D-based combination therapies
Research Interests:
- Novel approaches to overcome resistance to targeted therapeutics
- Pre-clinical models of lung cancer
Biography
I received my PhD in Cancer Sciences from the State University of New York at Buffalo working in the laboratory of Pamela Hershberger, PhD. Our work focused on understanding mechanisms of resistance to targeted therapeutics in molecularly defined subtypes of lung cancer. We demonstrated that vitamin D metabolites can be utilized as basis for effective combination approaches to enhance response to EGFR-targeting therapeutics in EGFR-mutant lung cancer.
My post-doctoral work built up on my previous research and focused on improving tumor delivery methods of vitamin D metabolites and vitamin D combination therapies. We collaborated with Yun Wu, PhD (SUNY Buffalo, Department of Biomedical Engineering) to design and test the efficacy of lipid nanoparticles for precise lung tumor delivery of vitamin D based combination therapies.
I joined the Office of Cancer Education and Training in 2023. In my current role, I perform the duties of the Director of Graduate Studies (DGS) for the master’s students in the Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center Cancer Sciences graduate program and serve on Student Progress and Divisional Committees. I am actively involved in the curriculum design and serve on the Integrated Cancer Sciences Committee, a group dedicated to developing high-quality didactics for the Roswell Park graduate program in Cancer Sciences.
Additionally, I teach several lectures in Integrated Cancer Sciences, our core graduate level course, and Fundamentals of Life Sciences, a course developed by me and aimed to familiarize the incoming graduate students with the most fundamental concepts of biological chemistry, thermodynamics, and cellular biology. Furthermore, I direct design and delivery of the lecture and laboratory activities for the Summer Research Experience in Cancer (SURE-CAN) Program for High School and College Students.
I am honored to work at a comprehensive cancer center and to support our mission in training the next generation of cancer scientists.
Positions
Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center
- Cancer Sciences - MS Program
- Director of Graduate Studies – Office of Cancer Education and Training
Background
Education and Training
- 2019 - PhD - Cancer Sciences, State University of New York at Buffalo, Buffalo, NY
- 2012 - BS - Pharmacology and Toxicology, State University of New York at Buffalo, Buffalo, NY
Professional Memberships
- American Association for Cancer Research (AACR)
- American Society for Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics (ASPET)
Publications
1. Wittlinger F, Ogboo BC, Shevchenko E, Damghani T, Pham CD, Schaeffner IK, Oligny BT, Chitnis SP, Beyett TS, Rasch A, Buckley B, Urul DA, Shaurova T, May EW, Schaefer EM, Eck MJ, Hershberger PA, Poso A, Laufer SA, Heppner DE. Linking ATP and allosteric sites to achieve superadditive binding with bivalent EGFR kinase inhibitors. Commun Chem. 2024 Feb 20;7(1):38. doi: 10.1038/s42004-024-01108-3. PubMed PMID: 38378740; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC10879502.
2. Shaurova T, Yan L, Su Y, Rich LJ, Vincent-Chong VK, Calkins H, Pokharel S, Petkovich M, Seshadri M, Wu Y, Hershberger PA. A nanotherapeutic strategy to target drug-tolerant cells and overcome EGFR tyrosine kinase inhibitor resistance in lung cancer. Cancer Commun (Lond). 2023 Apr;43(4):503-507. doi: 10.1002/cac2.12401. Epub 2023 Jan 24. PubMed PMID: 36691995; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC10091104.
3. Heppner DE, Wittlinger F, Beyett TS, Shaurova T, Urul DA, Buckley B, Pham CD, Schaeffner IK, Yang B, Ogboo BC, May EW, Schaefer EM, Eck MJ, Laufer SA, Hershberger PA. Structural Basis for Inhibition of Mutant EGFR with Lazertinib (YH25448). ACS Med Chem Lett. 2022 Dec 8;13(12):1856-1863. doi: 10.1021/acsmedchemlett.2c00213. eCollection 2022 Dec 8. PubMed PMID: 36518696; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC9743421.
4. Shaurova T, Dy GK, Battaglia S, Hutson A, Zhang L, Zhang Y, Lovly CM, Seshadri M, Goodrich DW, Johnson CS, Hershberger PA. Vitamin D3 Metabolites Demonstrate Prognostic Value in EGFR-Mutant Lung Adenocarcinoma and Can be Deployed to Oppose Acquired Therapeutic Resistance. Cancers (Basel). 2020 Mar 13;12(3). doi: 10.3390/cancers12030675. PubMed PMID: 32183160; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC7140110.
5. Bothwell KD, Shaurova T, Merzianu M, Suresh A, Kuriakose MA, Johnson CS, Hershberger PA, Seshadri M. Impact of Short-term 1,25-Dihydroxyvitamin D3 on the Chemopreventive Efficacy of Erlotinib against Oral Cancer. Cancer Prev Res (Phila). 2015 Sep;8(9):765-76. doi: 10.1158/1940-6207.CAPR-14-0454. Epub 2015 Jun 22. PubMed PMID: 26100522; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC4560661.