Faculty

Kevin Morris 
Assistant Professor
Department of Molecular and Experimental Medicine
TSRI - 2005

Education 
B.Sc, 1992-1996 Humboldt State University, Arcata, CA, Molecular Biology
Ph.D., University of California, Davis, CA, 1997-2001, Comparative Pathology

Awards & Activities 
2004 - Present, Adjunct Professor, Beckman Research Institute of the City of Hope
2001 - 2004 Post-doctoral Fellow, University of California San Diego
2008 - Listed as one of 30 “Tomorrow PI’s” by Genome Technology
2009 - Astor Fellow, Oxford University, Oxford England
1996 - 2001 Research Assistant, University of California Davis

Research Focus 
The Morris lab is specifically interested in utilizing antisense non-coding RNAs to regulate transcription of HIV-1 and genes involved in cancer. The lab is also interested in the discerning the underlying mechanism whereby long antisense non-coding RNAs regulate gene transcription in human cells. Lentiviral derived vector systems and cell targeted aptamers are employed to deliver non-coding RNA based modalities to target cells as well as to investigate the mechanistic interactions involved in long antisense non-coding RNA mediated regulation of transcription.

Selected References 
Morris K.V, Santoso S, Turner A-M, Pastori C, Hawkins PG. Bidirectional transcription directs both transcriptional gene activation and suppression in human cells. PLoS Genet. 2008 Nov;4(11):e1000258. Epub 2008 Nov 14. PMID: 19008947/PMCID: 2576438

Han J, Kim D, Morris KV. Promoter-associated RNA is required for RNA-directed transcriptional gene silencing in human cells. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2007 Jul 24;104(30):12422-7. Epub 2007 Jul 17. PMID: 17640892/PMCID: 1924466

Turner AM, De La Cruz J, Morris KV. Mobilization-competent Lentiviral Vector-mediated Sustained Transcriptional Modulation of HIV-1 Expression.Mol Ther. 2008 Dec 9;. PMID: 19066594

Hawkins PG, Santoso S, Adams C, Anest V, Morris KV. Promoter targeted small RNAs induce long-term transcriptional gene silencing in human cells. NAR. 2009 Mar 20,. PMID19304753