Federal Project Grant Award Summary

The National Cancer Institute (NCI), under the Cancer Biology Research program (CFDA 93.396), awarded $155,500 to The Washington University in support of a two-year research project entitled "Identification and Characterization of Mutation-Induced Alternative Splicing Events in Cancer Using Multi-Omics Data." The award, effective June 1, 2026, through May 31, 2028, funds fundamental cancer biology research aimed at discovering mutation-induced alternative splicing (MAS) events and their functional significance in cancer development. The project leverages existing multi-omics datasets, including comprehensive exome sequencing, RNA-sequencing, and mass spectrometry data from the Clinical Proteomic Tumor Analysis Consortium (CPTAC), to systematically identify somatic mutations that create cryptic splice sites and characterize the resulting alternative splicing patterns across multiple cancer types.

The research project produces scientific knowledge products designed to advance cancer immunotherapy by identifying neoantigens—immunogenic peptide candidates—arising from mutation-induced alternative splicing events. The work builds upon the investigative team's previously developed MISplice pipeline detection methodology and seeks to establish the functional relevance of these splicing events in cancer etiology. Deliverables include identification of mutation-induced alternative splicing events, functional characterization assessments, and neoantigen discovery outputs that are expected to provide novel therapeutic targets for cancer immunotherapy development.