ד"ר ענבל וורצל

Biography

Dr. Inbal Wortzel is an Assistant Professor, Department of Cancer Biology and Immunology, Gray School of Medicine, Tel Aviv University. She earned her Ph.D. in Biology from the Weizmann Institute of Science, where she studied structural changes in the Golgi apparatus during cell division. She completed her postdoctoral training at Weill Cornell Medicine in New York City under the mentorship of Prof. David Lyden, investigating the role of extracellular vesicle DNA in cancer progression. Dr. Wortzel has received grants from Worldwide Cancer Research and the RAPP program, and was named a Zuckerman Faculty Scholar for her scientific achievements.

Research

Dr. Inbal Wortzel’s research centers on the molecular and cellular mechanisms by which extracellular vesicle DNA (EV-DNA) contributes to anti-tumor immunity and metastatic progression. Her work combines cancer biology, immunology, and molecular cell biology to answer fundamental questions about how EV-DNA primes immune responses and alters metastatic niches. Recent projects have revealed unique chromatin structures of EV-DNA that mediate immune activation, and her lab is exploring the therapeutic potential of these findings to improve cancer diagnosis and treatment.

1. Wortzel I, Seo Y, Akano I, Shaashua L, Tobias GC, Hebert J, Kim KA, Kim DA, Dror S, Liu Y, Azrak GC, Cioffi M, Johnson KE, Hennika T, Twerski MZ, Kushner A, Math R, Han YD, Han DH, Jung M, Park J, Paik S, Shin JS, Lee MG, Russo MV, Zakheim D, Barnes J, Mehta S, Manova K, Schwartz RE, Thakur BK, Boudreau N, Matei I, Zhang H, Sidoli S, Bromberg J, David Y, Kim HS, Lyden D. "Unique structural configuration of EV-DNA primes Kupffer cell-mediated anti-tumor immunity to prevent metastatic progression." Nature Cancer 2024. DOI: 10.1038/s43018-024-00862-6
2. Kim KA, Kim S, Wortzel I, Lee S, Han YD, Kim TM, Kim HS. "Genome-wide methylation profiling reveals extracellular vesicle DNA as an ex vivo surrogate of cancer cell-derived DNA." Scientific Reports 2024. DOI: 10.1038/s41598-024-75287-3
3. Wortzel I, Porat Z, Seger R, Maik-Rachline G. "Applying imaging flow cytometry and immunofluorescence in studying the dynamic Golgi structure in cultured cells." STAR Protocols, 2022. DOI: 10.1016/j.xpro.2022.101278
4. Choi J, Cho HY, Jeon J, Kim K, Han YD, Ahn JB, Wortzel I, Lyden D, Kim HS. "Detection of circulating KRAS mutant DNA in extracellular vesicles using droplet digital PCR in patients with colon cancer." Frontiers in Oncology 2022. DOI: 10.3389/fonc.2022.1067210
5. Wortzel I, Maik-Rachline G, Yadav SS, Hanoch T, Seger R. "Mitotic HOOK3 phosphorylation by ERK1c drives microtubule-dependent Golgi destabilization and fragmentation." iScience 2021. DOI: 10.1016/j.isci.2021.102670
6. Wortzel I, Koifman G, Rotter V, Seger R, Porat Z. "High Throughput Analysis of Golgi Structure by Imaging Flow Cytometry." Scientific Reports, 2017. DOI: 10.1038/s41598-017-00909-y
7. Wortzel I, Hanoch T, Porat Z, Seger R. "Mitotic Golgi translocation of ERK1c is mediated by PI4KIIIβ–14-3-3γ shuttling complex." Journal of Cell Science 2015. DOI: 10.1242/jcs.170910
8. Pauker MH, Reicher B, Joseph N, Wortzel I, et al. "WASp family verprolin-homologous protein-2 (WAVE2) and Wiskott-Aldrich syndrome protein (WASp) engage in distinct downstream signaling interactions at the T cell antigen receptor site." Journal of Biological Chemistry 2014. DOI: 10.1074/jbc.M114.591685

1. Wortzel I, Dror S, Kenific CM, Lyden D. "Exosome-Mediated Metastasis: Communication from a Distance." Developmental Cell, 2019. DOI:  10.1016/j.devcel.2019.04.011
2. Maik-Rachline G, Wortzel I, Seger R. "Alternative splicing of MAPKs in the regulation of signaling specificity." Cells, 2021. DOI: 10.3390/cells10123466
3. Wortzel I, Seger R. "The ERK Cascade: Distinct Functions within Various Subcellular Organelles." Genes Cancer, 2011. DOI: 10.1177/1947601911407328