Katherine Alexander
Assistant Professor
Cancer Center Member
Ph.D., Cornell University, 2016
B.A., Carleton College, 2010
[email protected] | 516-367-8864
Your genetic material, the DNA, is housed in a small compartment within your cells, called the cell nucleus. While famous as the cell鈥檚 DNA container, the nucleus is not just DNA. It also contains non-DNA substructures that intermingle with DNA. We study how DNA interfaces with these substructures and why this organization is important.
Our research centers on the fundamental mechanisms of gene regulation as mediated by nuclear speckles. Nuclear speckles are a prominent gene-activating substructure defined by specific protein markers and present within nuclei of cells throughout our bodies. While these structures have been long observed, their role in the central dogma of biology and importance across dynamic biological processes remain enigmatic. The Alexander Lab aims to build textbook models for nuclear-speckle-based gene regulation.
We are currently focused on two major levels of gene regulation by nuclear speckles: 1) regulation of what DNA is positioned next to speckles 鈥 this is mediated by DNA-binding transcription factors and 2) regulation of speckle state, which varies in two major ways in human cancer, correlating with survival and drug responsiveness. We seek to apply these paradigms to normal and pathogenic processes, uncovering the overarching functions of speckle-based gene regulation and using this information to improve disease outcomes and patient quality-of-life.
The science of storytelling
July 23, 2026
Science journalists learn the value of visual storytelling in this intensive filmmaking workshop.
On the trail of a cellular cold case
December 16, 2025
Join us as we shine light on the mystery of nuclear speckles. Hear about their potential links to cancer and see where the science may take us next.
Alexander wins Kidney Cancer Association Trailblazer Award
November 4, 2025
The $75,000 grant supports her lab鈥檚 cutting-edge research on the role of nuclear speckles in kidney and renal pelvic cancers.
Kate Alexander wins NIH Director鈥檚 New Innovator award
October 8, 2025
The award supports Alexander's cutting-edge research on the role of nuclear speckles in gene regulation and disease.
At the Lab: The nuclear speckle option
May 6, 2025
Speckles sound innocent enough, like little spots. But don鈥檛 be fooled. These tiny structures could someday have big implications for cancer care.
Cocktails & Chromosomes: The hidden world inside our cells
March 20, 2025
What are nuclear speckles and how might these mysterious structures impact your DNA? Get an inside look from CSHL Assistant Professor Kate Alexander.
A speckle of hope for cancer patients
January 2, 2025
Research from new CSHL Assistant Professor Katherine Alexander suggests that nuclear speckles could influence kidney cancer patient outcomes.
CSHL鈥檚 oldest haunts
October 31, 2024
These buildings have weathered oceans of time to be here. Pull back the veil and cross over into CSHL鈥檚 storied past for a closer look.
Katherine Alexander joins CSHL cancer faculty
August 5, 2024
Her team will explore mysterious cellular structures known as nuclear speckles and their role in diseases such as cancer.
All Publications
13 Aug 2025 | Cell Reports Medicine | :102301
Aznar, M; Good, Charly; Barber-Rotenberg, Julie; Agarwal, Sangya; Wilson, Wesley; Watts, Alex; Zhang, Zhen; Gonzales, Donna; Donahue, Greg; Hwang, Wei-Ting; Rennels, Austin; Rech, Andrew; Kuramitsu, Shunichiro; Huang, Hua; Glastad, Karl; Alexander, Katherine; Plesa, Gabriela; Dowd, Emily; Brennan, Andrea; Siegel, Donald; Tanyi, Janos; Haas, Andrew; Torigian, Drew; Nadolski, Gregory; Gonzalez, Vanessa; Hexner, Elizabeth; Fraietta, Joseph; Jadlowsky, Julie; Young, Regina; Berger, Shelley; June, Carl; O'Hara, Mark;
19 May 2025 | Scientific Reports | 15(1):17359
Huang, Hua; Baxter, Amy; Zhang, Zhen; Good, Charly; Alexander, Katherine; Chen, Zeyu; Garcia, Paula; Samareh, Parisa; Collins, Sierra; Glastad, Karl; Wang, Lu; Donahue, Gregory; Manne, Sasikanth; Giles, Josephine; Shi, Junwei; Berger, Shelley; Wherry, E;
21 Feb 2025 | Nature Structural & Molecular Biology
Yu, Ruofan; Roseman, Shelby; Siegenfeld, Allison; Gardner, Zachary; Nguyen, Son; Tran, Khoa; Joyce, Eric; Jain, Rajan; Liau, Brian; Krantz, Ian; Alexander, Katherine; Berger, Shelley;
2 Jan 2025 | Nature Cell Biology
Alexander, Katherine; Yu, Ruofan; Skuli, Nicolas; Coffey, Nathan; Nguyen, Son; Faunce, Christine; Huang, Hua; Dardani, Ian; Good, Austin; Lim, Joan; Li, Catherine; Biddle, Nicholas; Joyce, Eric; Raj, Arjun; Lee, Daniel; Keith, Brian; Simon, M; Berger, Shelley;
5 Apr 2024 | eLife | 12
Coté, Allison; O'Farrell, Aoife; Dardani, Ian; Dunagin, Margaret; Coté, Chris; Wan, Yihan; Bayatpour, Sareh; Drexler, Heather; Alexander, Katherine; Chen, Fei; Wassie, Asmamaw; Patel, Rohan; Pham, Kenneth; Boyden, Edward; Berger, Shelly; Phillips-Cremins, Jennifer; Churchman, L; Raj, Arjun;
16 Sep 2023 | bioRxiv
Alexander, Katherine; Yu, Ruofan; Skuli, Nicolas; Coffey, Nathan; Nguyen, Son; Faunce, Christine; Huang, Hua; Dardani, Ian; Good, Austin; Lim, Joan; Li, Catherine; Biddle, Nicholas; Joyce, Eric; Raj, Arjun; Lee, Daniel; Keith, Brian; Simon, M; Berger, Shelley;
22 Jul 2023 | bioRxiv
Yu, Ruofan; Roseman, Shelby; Siegenfeld, Allison; Nguyen, Son; Joyce, Eric; Liau, Brian; Krantz, Ian; Alexander, Katherine; Berger, Shelley;
21 Jul 2023 | Science Advances | 9(29)
Collins, Sierra; Alexander, Katherine; Lundh, Stefan; Dimitri, Alexander; Zhang, Zhen; Good, Charly; Fraietta, Joseph; Berger, Shelley;
2 Jun 2022 | Cancer Discovery | 12(6):1462-1481
Rajurkar, Mihir; Parikh, Aparna; Solovyov, Alexander; You, Eunae; Kulkarni, Anupriya; Chu, Chong; Xu, Katherine; Jaicks, Christopher; Taylor, Martin; Wu, Connie; Alexander, Katherine; Good, Charly; Szabolcs, Annamaria; Gerstberger, Stefanie; Tran, Antuan; Xu, Nova; Ebright, Richard; Van Seventer, Emily; Vo, Kevin; Tai, Eric; Lu, Chenyue; Joseph-Chazan, Jasmin; Raabe, Michael; Nieman, Linda; Desai, Niyati; Arora, Kshitij; Ligorio, Matteo; Thapar, Vishal; Cohen, Limor; Garden, Padric; Senussi, Yasmeen; Zheng, Hui; Allen, Jill; Blaszkowsky, Lawrence; Clark, Jeffrey; Goyal, Lipika; Wo, Jennifer; Ryan, David; Corcoran, Ryan; Deshpande, Vikram; Rivera, Miguel; Aryee, Martin; Hong, Theodore; Berger, Shelley; Walt, David; Burns, Kathleen; Park, Peter; Greenbaum, Benjamin; Ting, David;
Dec 2021 | Cell | 184(25):6081-6100.e26
Good, Charly; Aznar, M; Kuramitsu, Shunichiro; Samareh, Parisa; Agarwal, Sangya; Donahue, Greg; Ishiyama, Kenichi; Wellhausen, Nils; Rennels, Austin; Ma, Yujie; Tian, Lifeng; Guedan, Sonia; Alexander, Katherine; Zhang, Zhen; Rommel, Philipp; Singh, Nathan; Glastad, Karl; Richardson, Max; Watanabe, Keisuke; Tanyi, Janos; O’Hara, Mark; Ruella, Marco; Lacey, Simon; Moon, Edmund; Schuster, Stephen; Albelda, Steven; Lanier, Lewis; Young, Regina; Berger, Shelley; June, Carl;