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Katja Lamia, PhD

Professor

Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology

Associate Dean of Graduate Studies

Katja Lamia, PhD

Research Focus

Circadian clocks enable organisms to keep track of the time of day and to adjust their physiology to recurring, and therefore predictable, daily changes in the external environment. Our work has demonstrated that circadian clocks are critical regulators of mammalian metabolic physiology and the response to DNA damage. We are studying the molecular basis for the circadian control of metabolism, DNA damage response, and tumorigenesis to enable novel therapies to treat metabolic disease and cancer.

Select Publications

  • Pariollaud, Marie; Ibrahim, Lara H.; Irizarry, Emanuel; Mello, Rebecca M.; Chan, Alanna B.; Altman, Brian J.; Shaw, Reuben J.; Bollong, Michael J.; Wiseman, R L.; Lamia, K A. Circadian disruption enhances HSF1 signaling and tumorigenesis in -driven lung cancer. 2022, 8, eabo1123.

  • Casanova-Vallve, Nuria; Duglan, Drew; Vaughan, M E.; Pariollaud, Marie; Handzlik, Michal K.; Fan, Weiwei; Yu, Ru T.; Liddle, Christopher; Downes, Michael; Delezie, Julien; Mello, Rebecca; Chan, Alanna B.; Westermark, Pål O.; Metallo, Christian M.; Evans, Ronald M.; Lamia, K A. Daily running enhances molecular and physiological circadian rhythms in skeletal muscle. 2022, 61, 101504.

  • Chan, Alanna B.; Parico, Gian Carlo G; Fribourgh, Jennifer L.; Ibrahim, Lara H.; Bollong, Michael J.; Partch, Carrie L.; Lamia, K A. missense mutations suppress P53 and enhance cell growth. 2021, 118.

  • Vaughan, Megan E.; Wallace, M.; Handzlik, M. K.; Chan, Alanna B.; Metallo, C. M.; Lamia, Katja A. Cryptochromes suppress HIF1a in muscles. iScience 2020, 23.

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  • Jordan, S. D.; Kriebs, Anna; Vaughan, Megan E.; Duglan, D.; Fan, W.; Henriksson, E.; Huber, A. L.; Papp, Stephanie J.; Nguyen, M.; Afetian, M.; Downes, M.; Yu, R. T.; Kralli, Anastasia; Evans, R. M.; Lamia, Katja A. CRY1/2 selectively repress PPARd and limit exercise capacity. Cell Metabolism 2017, 26, 243-255.

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  • Huber, A. L.; Papp, Stephanie J.; Chan, Alanna B.; Henriksson, E.; Jordan, S. D.; Kriebs, Anna; Nguyen, M.; Wallace, M.; Li, Z.; Metallo, C. M.; Lamia, Katja A. CRY2 and FBXL3 cooperatively degrade c-MYC. Molecular Cell 2016, 64, 774-789.

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News, Events & Media
Reading our biological clocks
Magazine

Reading our biological clocks

Katja Lamia shares how our internal circadian clocks dictate the rhythm of our lives.

Molecular & Cellular Biology
In the Media

Your muscles keep time too. How circadian rhythms affect your workout and your health 

NPR

Molecular & Cellular Biology
Scripps Research scientists Ilia Droujinine and Katja Lamia awarded Curebound Discovery Grant
Magazine

Scripps Research scientists Ilia Droujinine and Katja Lamia awarded Curebound Discovery Grant

Scripps Research scientists Ilia Droujinine, PhD, assistant professor and principal investigator in the Department of Molecular Medicine, and Katja Lamia, PhD, professor in the Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology, have received a Discovery Grant from Curebound. Under the award, they will also collaborate with Reuben Shaw, PhD, professor, William R. Brody Chair, and Director of the Salk Cancer Center at the Salk Institute, to decode and validate new therapeutics for cancer.

Molecular & Cellular Biology Awards & Honors
Masters of metabolism
Magazine

Masters of metabolism

As it turns out, our metabolisms have been misunderstood for decades. These Scripps Research scientists are changing the way we think about metabolic disorders, weight control and eating habits—paving the way for new drugs to treat some of the most serious health conditions our world faces today.

Molecular & Cellular Biology Translational Medicine Neuroscience Ed Ramos
The link between circadian rhythms and your health: Scripps Research scientist explains
Video

The link between circadian rhythms and your health: Scripps Research scientist explains

Circadian rhythms are processes that follow a 24-hour cycle, enabling organisms to keep track of the time of day and adjust their physiology to recurring daily changes in the external environment. In this video, Scripps Research associate professor Katja Lamia discusses the molecular processes that occur when circadian rhythms are disrupted, and how it affects human health.

Molecular & Cellular Biology Aging & Healthspan Molecular & Cellular Biology
The surprising link between circadian disruption and cancer may have to do with temperature
News

The surprising link between circadian disruption and cancer may have to do with temperature

Scripps Research scientists pinpoint an unusual culprit in cancer: a family of genes that respond to temperature changes in the body.

Molecular & Cellular Biology
Skaggs Graduate School for Chemical & Biological Sciences
News

Skaggs Graduate School at Scripps Research earns another top ten ranking

World-renowned program is ranked highly for chemistry and biological sciences.

Institute News
Scientists reveal how internal biological clock may suppress tumor growth
News

Scientists reveal how internal biological clock may suppress tumor growth

New discovery helps explain how disruption to daily biological rhythms, such as long-term rotational shift work, could lead to increased risk of cancer.

Molecular & Cellular Biology
Groundbreaking Science.
Life-changing Medicine.