Dolores Hambardzumyan, PhD, MBA
Professor of Neurosurgery
Scientific Director, Penn Brain Tumor Center, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania
Department: Neurosurgery
Graduate Group Affiliations
Contact information
One uCity Square
25 N 38th Street, Room 3103
Philadelphia, PA 19104
25 N 38th Street, Room 3103
Philadelphia, PA 19104
Publications
Education:
MS (Biochemistry (Summa Cum Laude))
Yerevan State University, Armenia , 1999.
PhD (Biochemistry/Neuroscience)
Armenian National Academy of Sciences, Armenia, 2002.
MBA (Goizueta Business School)
Emory University, Atlanta, GA, 2019.
N/A (Executive Coaching)
Goizueta Business School, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, 2021.
Permanent linkMS (Biochemistry (Summa Cum Laude))
Yerevan State University, Armenia , 1999.
PhD (Biochemistry/Neuroscience)
Armenian National Academy of Sciences, Armenia, 2002.
MBA (Goizueta Business School)
Emory University, Atlanta, GA, 2019.
N/A (Executive Coaching)
Goizueta Business School, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, 2021.
Description of Research Expertise
My research expertise is centered on advanced models, including humanized and genetically engineered mouse models of brain tumors, patient samples, genomics, and two-photon live imaging. In my laboratory, we focus on understanding the cellular and molecular mechanisms by which the brain tumor microenvironment, particularly myeloid subsets, contributes to tumor progression and therapeutic resistance. By integrating neuroscience, immunology, cancer biology, and genetics, our work aims to develop innovative therapies for brain tumors.Keywords: Angiogenesis, Anti-Tumor Therapy, Bioinformatics, Blood-Brain Barrier, Brain, Brain Imaging, Cellular Immunity, Chemokines, Chemotaxis, Cytokines, Drug Resistance, Genomics, Knockout Mice, Microglia, Neurobiology, Neuroscience, Signal Transduction, Translational Research, Two-Photon Imaging
Rotation Projects:
1. The role of TREM family members in Brain tumors. The project will investigate the role of TREM family members in glioblastoma, aiming to uncover how TREM receptors regulate the functional states of tumor-associated myeloid cells and their crosstalk with glioblastoma cells.
2. The project will explore the role of microglia in the growth, invasion, and immune evasion of diffuse midline gliomas within pediatric high-grade gliomas.
Selected Publications
Michael Christian Virata, Jorge Samanamud, Cheyanne C Slocum , Shrishtee Kandoi , Phuong Nguyen, Milan R Savani, Diana D Shi, Sachein Sharma, Satomi Hiya, Carolina Maldonado-Díaz, Kevin Clare, Raquel T Yokoda, Meenakshi Vij , Ema Mir, Yurika Nishikawa, Melissa Umphlett, Raymund L Yong, Joshua B Bederson, Thenzing J Silva-Hurtado, Steven Brem, Dolores Hambardzumyan, Matija Snuderl, Mariano S Viapiano, Kalil G Abdullah, Samuel K McBrayer, Kimmo J Hatanpaa, Jamie M Walker, Nadejda M Tsankova, Timothy E Richardson.: Expanding the molecular grading criteria in IDH-mutant astrocytoma. Neuro Oncol. 2026 Mar 28:noag069. , Mar 2026.Montserrat Puigdelloses Vallcorba 1 , Nishant Soni 2 , Seung-Won Choi 3 , Kavita Rawat 1 4 , Tanvi Joshi 1 4 , Sam Friedman 5 , Alice Buonfiglioli 1 , Angelo Angione 1 , Zhihong Chen 1 6 , Gonzalo Piñero 1 , Gabrielle Price 1 , Mehek Dedhia 1 , Raina Roche 6 7 , Emir Radkevich 6 7 , Anne M Bowcock 1 , Deepti Bhatt 8 , Winfried Edelmann 9 , Robert M Samstein 1 7 10 , Timothy E Richardson 10 , Nadejda M Tsankova 11 , Alexander M Tsankov 2 6 7 , Ranjit S Bindra 12 13 , Raul Rabadan 3 , Juan C Vasquez 8 , Dolores Hambardzumyan 1 4: Mismatch repair deficiency drives malignant progression and alters the tumor immune microenvironment in glioblastoma models. J Clin Invest. Dec 23;136(6):e195189., Dec 2025.
Markella Zannikou, Joseph T Duffy, Daniele Procissi, Hinda Najem, Rebecca N Levine, Aditi Thakur, Dolores Hambardzumyan, Catalina Lee-Chang, Lara Leoni, Craig M Horbinski, Dmitri Simberg, Bin Zhang, Amy B Heimberger, Jason Miska, Irina V Balyasnikova.: Bi-specific T cell-engaging antibody triggers protective immune memory and glioma microenvironment remodeling in immune-competent preclinical models. J Immunother Cancer. 2025 Oct 28;13(10):e011714., Oct 2025.
Mohamad D Bairakdar # 1 2 3 , Wooseung Lee # 1 2 3 , Bruno Giotti # 1 2 3 , Akhil Kumar # 1 2 3 , Paula Stancl # 4 , Elvin Wagenblast 3 , Dolores Hambardzumyan 3 , Paz Polak 5 , Rosa Karlic 6 , Alexander M Tsankov 7 8 9: Learning the cellular origins across cancers using single-cell chromatin landscapes. Nat Commun. Sep 17;16(1):8301., Sep 2025.
Cameron Crowell 1 2 , Ziwen Zhu 3 4 5 , Yingxiang Li 3 4 5 , Maria L Varela 3 4 5 , Quinn Ostrom 6 , Patrick J Cimino 7 , Sohil H Patel 8 , Suzanne J Baker 9 , Chetan Bettegowda 10 , Houtan Noushmehr 11 , Claudia L Kleinman 12 , Laura Canty 13 , Gustavo Alencastro Veiga Cruzeiro 14 , Anandani Nellan 15 , Oren Becher 16 , Tom B Davidson 17 , Dolores Hambardzumyan 18 , Adam Green 19 , Robert Thorne 20 , Kelli Wilson 21 , Brett Theeler 22 , Jason Gregory 22 , Peter Mathen 23 , Nadia Biassou 24 , Sheila McThenia 25 , Craig Erker 1 26 , Robert Galvin 27 , Ariane Soldatos 28 , Pedro R Lowenstein 3 4 5 , Maria G Castro 3 4 5 , Sadhana Jackson 29 30: A review of diffuse hemispheric glioma, H3 G34-mutant disease development, DNA repair, microenvironment, and treatments on the horizon. NPJ Precis Oncol. 2025 Aug 14;9(1):283., Aug 2025.
Cheyanne C Slocum, Phuong Nguyen, Meenakshi Vij, Raymund L Yong, Jorge Samanamud, Satomi Hiya, Carolina Maldonado-Díaz, Melissa Umphlett, Thenzing J Silva-Hurtado, Kimmo J Hatanpaa, Mariano S Viapiano, Matija Snuderl, Kalil G Abdullah, Samuel K McBrayer, Dolores Hambardzumyan, Jamie M Walker, Nadejda M Tsankova, Timothy E Richardson.: EGFR alteration is an adverse prognostic factor in IDH-mutant astrocytoma. Acta Neuropathol. 2025 Aug 19;150(1):20., Aug 2025.
Soni N, Rawat K, Chen Z, Giotti B, Di Mourio A, Hambardzumyan D, & Tsankov AM : Single-cell dissection of the genotype-immunophenotype relationship in glioblastoma. Brain Apr 2025 Notes: [Online ahead of print]; doi: 10.1093/brain/awaf129.
Seblani M, Zannikou M, Duffy JT, Joshi T, Levine RN, Thakur A, Puigdelloses Vallcorba M, Horbinski CM, Miska J, Hambardzumyan D, Becher OJ, Balyasnikova IV: IL13RA2-integrated genetically engineered mouse model allows for CAR T cells targeting pediatric high-grade gliomas. Acta Neuropathol Commun 13(1): 69, Apr 2025.
Li J, Shih LK, Markwell SM, Olson CL, Sullivan DP, Arvanitis C, Ross JL, Lam NG, Nuszen H, Hambardzumyan D, Becher OJ, Brat DJ: A clinically relevant model and method to study necrosis as a driving force in glioma restructuring and progression. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 122(1): e2416024122, Feb 2025.
Garcia-Fabiani MB, Haase S, Banerjee K, Zhu Z, McClellan BL, Mujeeb AA, Li Y, Tronrud CE, Varela ML, West MEJ, Yu J, Kadiyala P, Taher AW, Nunez FJ, Alghamri MS, Comba A, Mendez FM, Nicola Candia AJ, Salazar B, Nunez FM, Edwards MB, Qin T, Cartaxo RT, Niculcea M, Koschmann C, Venneti S, Vallcorba MP, Nasajpour E, Pericoli G, Vinci M, Kleinman CL, Jabado N, Chandler JP, Sonabend AM, DeCuypere M, Hambardzumyan D, Prolo LM, Mahaney KB, Grant GA, Petritsch CK, Welch JD, Sartor MA, Lowenstein PR, Castro MG: H3.3-G34R Mutation-Mediated Epigenetic Reprogramming Leads to Enhanced Efficacy of Immune Stimulatory Gene Therapy in Diffuse Hemispheric Gliomas. bioRxiv Feb 2025 Notes: Accepted Preprint; doi: 10.1101/2023.06.13.544658.