Staff Profile

Anastasia is a basic scientist with an interest in stem cell and urological cancer biology. Since obtaining her BSc degree in Biochemistry and PhD in Molecular Biology of Prostate Cancer from Newcastle University, she has continued working here in the Heer Lab developing stem cell models to study primarily prostate cancer. Her work has contributed to the first generation of human prostate-derived induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) opening up new and exciting opportunities for translational work within the field. She recently led on the generation of prostate organoids from iPSCs and is currently using gene editing to introduce patient‐specific mutations into iPSCs to generate bespoke cancer organoids with a view to recreate the patient’s cancer to serve as in vitro “avatars” for preclinical testing.

Anastasia is a recipient of a Prostate Cancer Foundation Young Investigator Award to study mechanisms of PARP inhibitor resistance in BRCA2-mutated prostate cancer and identify new combination treatment strategies that will lead to improved outcomes for these patients. She will develop prostate cancer organoid models derived from iPSCs to contain clinically relevant pathogenic BRCA2 mutations and explore the role of hypoxia in salvaging sensitivity for these men with PARP inhibitor refractory disease. This work could identify new therapeutic approaches for testing in clinical trials potentially informing new prostate cancer precision medicine strategies for this subclass of men.

• Hepburn AC, Sims CHC, Buskin A, Heer R. Engineering Prostate Cancer from Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells-New Opportunities to Develop Preclinical Tools in Prostate and Prostate Cancer Studies. International Journal of Molecular Sciences 2020, 21(3), 905.
• Hepburn AC, Curry EL, Moad M, Steele RE, Franco OE, Wilson L, Singh P, Buskin A, Crawford SE, Gaughan L, Mills IG, Hayward SW, Robson CN, Heer R. Propagation of human prostate tissue from induced pluripotent stem cells. Stem Cells Translational Medicine 2020, 9(7), 734-745.
• Hepburn AC, Steele RE, Veeratterapillay R, Wilson L, Kounatidou EE, Barnard A, Berry P, Cassidy JR, Moad M, El-Sherif A, Gaughan L, Mills IG, Robson CN, Heer R. Correction: The induction of core pluripotency master regulators in cancers defines poor clinical outcomes and treatment resistance (Oncogene, (2019), 10.1038/s41388-019-0712-y). Oncogene 2019, 38, 4425.
• Hepburn AC, Steele RE, Veeratterapillay R, Wilson L, Kounatidou EE, Barnard A, Berry P, Cassidy JR, Moad M, El-Sherif A, Gaughan L, Mills IG, Robson CN, Heer R. The induction of core pluripotency master regulators in cancers defines poor clinical outcomes and treatment resistance. Oncogene 2019, 38, 4412-4424.
• Hatina J, Parmar HS, Kripnerova M, Hepburn A, Heer R. Urothelial carcinoma stem cells: Current concepts, controversies, and methods. In: Schulz, WA; Hoffmann, MJ; Niegisch, G, ed. Urothelial Carcinoma: Methods and Protocols. New York: Humana Press Inc, 2018, pp.121-136.
• Moad M, Pal D, Hepburn AC, Williamson SC, Wilson L, Lako M, Armstrong L, Hayward SW, Franco O, Cates J, Fordham SE, Przyborski S, Carr-Wilkinson J, Robson CN, Heer R. A novel model of urinary tract differentiation, tissue regeneration, and disease: Reprogramming human prostate and bladder cells into induced pluripotent stem cells. European Urology 2013, 64(5), 753-761.
• Williamson SC, Mitter R, Hepburn AC, Wilson L, Mantilla A, Leung HY, Robson CN, Heer R. Characterisations of human prostate stem cells reveal deficiency in class I UGT enzymes as a novel mechanism for castration-resistant prostate cancer. British Journal of Cancer 2013, 109(4), 950-956.
• Moad M, Hepburn A, Lako M, Pal D, Williamson S, Robson C, Heer R. Generation of induced pluripotent stem cells from human urinary tract cells. In: Annual Meeting of the Society of Academic and Research Surgery. 2013, London, UK: John Wiley & Sons Ltd.
• Hepburn AC, Gaughan L, Williamson SC, Pal D, Moad M, Kanani MK, Robson CN, Heer R. Investigating the regulation and effects on androgen receptor expression using a novel stem cell environment model of castration resistant prostate cancer. In: Annual Meeting of the Society of Academic and Research Surgery. 2013, London, UK: Wiley-Blackwell.
• Heer R, Hepburn AC, Williamson SC, Kennedy A, El-Sherif A, Soomro NA, Brown CD, Robson CN. Renal differentiation from adult spermatogonial stem cells. Renal Failure 2013, 35(10), 1387-1391.
• Pal D, Moad M, Hepburn AC, Williamson SC, Robson CN, Heer R. Reply from Authors re: "Reprogramming Stromal Cell from the Urinary Tract and Prostate: A Trip to Pluripotency and Back?". European Urology 2013. In Press.
• Pal D, Moad M, Hepburn AC, Williamson SC, Robson CN, Heer R. Reply from Authors re: Felix Wezel, Jennifer Southgate. Reprogramming Stromal Cells from the Urinary Tract and Prostate: A Trip to Pluripotency and Back? Eur Urol 2013;64:762-4. European Urology 2013, 64(5), 764-765.
• Williamson C, Hepburn AC, Mantilla A, Wilson L, Leung HY, Robson CN, Heer R. Stockpiling testosterone; A unique mechanism of progression to castrate resistant disease. In: Annual Meeting of the Society of Academic and Research Surgery. 2013, London, UK: Wiley-Blackwell.
• Williamson SC, Hepburn AC, Wilson L, Coffey K, Ryan-Munden CA, Pal D, Leung HY, Robson CN, Heer R. Human α₂β₁^HI CD133^+VE Epithelial Prostate Stem Cells Express Low Levels of Active Androgen Receptor. PLoS One 2012, 7(11), e48944.
• Hepburn AC, Veeratterapillay R, Williamson SC, El-Sherif A, Sahay N, Thomas HD, Mantilla A, Pickard RS, Robson CN, Heer R. Side Population in Human Non-Muscle Invasive Bladder Cancer Enriches for Cancer Stem Cells That Are Maintained by MAPK Signalling. PLoS One 2012, 7(11), e50690.
• Blackwood JK, Williamson SC, Greaves LC, Wilson L, Rigas AC, Sandher R, Pickard RS, Robson CN, Turnbull DM, Taylor RW, Heer R. In situ lineage tracking of human prostatic epithelial stem cell fate reveals a common clonal origin for basal and luminal cells. Journal of Pathology 2011, 225(2), 181-188.
• Williamson SC, Rigas AC, Robson CN, Heer R, Heer R. An update on the prostate cancer stem cell model-CD133+ve stem cell enriched human prostate cells express active androgen receptor. In: British Journal of Surgery: Annual Meeting of the Society of Academic and Research Surgery. 2011, Dublin, Ireland: John Wiley & Sons Ltd.
• Pal D, Williamson SC, Robson CN, Rigas AC, Heer R. Characterising potential for pluripotency induction in human prostate tissue. In: British Journal of Surgery: Annual Meeting of the Society of Academic and Research Surgery. 2011, Dublin, Ireland: John Wiley & Sons Ltd.
• Williamson SC, Mitter R, Rigas AC, Robson CN, Heer R. Comparative meta-analysis of the human prostate stem cell transcriptome demonstrates that progenitor cells are the site of malignant transformation. In: British Journal of Surgery: Annual Meeting of the Society of Academic and Research Surgery. 2011, Dublin, Ireland: John Wiley & Sons Ltd.
• Heer R, Clarke N, Rigas AC, Cheek TR, Pickard R, Leung HY. Phenotypic Modulation of Human Urinary Tract Stroma-derived Fibroblasts by Transforming Growth Factor β3. Urology 2010, 76(2), 509.e13-509.e20.
• Rigas AC, Jaiswal N, Williamson SC, Pickard R, Robson CN, Heer R. Side population in human bladder cancer enriches for cancer stem cells that can be targeted by MAPK inhibition. In: British Journal of Surgery: Annual Meeting of the Society of Academic and Research Surgery. 2011, Dublin, Ireland: John Wiley & Sons Ltd.
• Rigas AC, Robson CN, Curtin NJ. Therapeutic potential of CDK inhibitor NU2058 in androgen-independent prostate cancer. Oncogene 2007, 26(55), 7611-7619.
• Rigas AC, Ozanne DM, Neal DE, Robson CN. The scaffolding protein RACK1 interacts with androgen receptor and promotes cross-talk through a protein kinase C signaling pathway. Journal of Biological Chemistry 2003, 278(46), 46087-46093.