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Jeonghwan Youk

Seoul National University · Medicine

About the Lab

Professor Jeonghwan Youk's research lab focuses on understanding the molecular mechanisms underlying cancer evolution, viral pathogenesis, and somatic genome dynamics in human diseases. The lab employs advanced genomics, single-cell sequencing, and patient-derived 3D organoid models to study tumor heterogeneity, therapy resistance in lung cancer, SARS-CoV-2 infection in human lung cells, and retrotransposition-driven mutagenesis in aging and cancer. A central theme is the integration of multi-omics data to trace clonal evolution and identify genetic drivers of disease progression and treatment failure.

cancer evolutionviral pathogenesissingle-cell genomicsorganoid modelssomatic retrotransposition

Research Overview

Papers
120
Total Citations
1,938
Papers (5y)
82
Primary Field
Medicine

Research Output Trend

Figures are computed from collected data and may differ slightly.

Publications per year (5y)
82total
2022
2023
2024
2025
2026
Citations per year (5y)
222total
20222023202420252026

Selected Papers

15
1
Article|508 citations·2017
Clonal History and Genetic Predictors of Transformation Into Small-Cell Carcinomas From Lung Adenocarcinomas
Jake June-Koo Lee, Junehawk Lee, Sehui Kim, Soyeon Kim, Jeonghwan Youk, Seongyeol Park, Yohan An, Bhumsuk Keam, Dong‐Wan Kim, Dae Seog Heo, Young Tae Kim, Jin-Soo Kim
SJR Q1Journal of Clinical Oncology

Purpose Histologic transformation of EGFR mutant lung adenocarcinoma (LADC) into small-cell lung cancer (SCLC) has been described as one of the major resistant mechanisms for epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs). However, the molecular pathogenesis is still unclear. Methods We investigated 21 patients with advanced EGFR-mutant LADCs that were transformed into EGFR TKI-resistant SCLCs. Among them, whole genome sequencing was applied for nine tumors acquired at

OncologyMedicine
2
Article|268 citations·2020
Three-Dimensional Human Alveolar Stem Cell Culture Models Reveal Infection Response to SARS-CoV-2
Jeonghwan Youk, Taewoo Kim, Kelly V. Evans, Young-Il Jeong, Yong Suk Hur, Seon Pyo Hong, Je Hyoung Kim, Kijong Yi, Su Yeon Kim, Kwon Joong Na, Thomas Bleazard, Ho Min Kim
SJR Q1Cell stem cellOA

Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), which is the cause of a present pandemic, infects human lung alveolar type 2 (hAT2) cells. Characterizing pathogenesis is crucial for developing vaccines and therapeutics. However, the lack of models mirroring the cellular physiology and pathology of hAT2 cells limits the study. Here, we develop a feeder-free, long-term, three-dimensional (3D) culture technique for hAT2 cells derived from primary human lung tissue and investigate infe

Infectious DiseasesMedicine
3
Article|246 citations·2019
Tracing Oncogene Rearrangements in the Mutational History of Lung Adenocarcinoma
Jake June-Koo Lee, Seongyeol Park, Hansol Park, Sehui Kim, Jongkeun Lee, Junehawk Lee, Jeonghwan Youk, Kijong Yi, Yohan An, In Kyu Park, Chang Hyun Kang, Doo Hyun Chung
SJR Q1CellOA
Cancer ResearchBiochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology
4
Article|144 citations·2021
Clonal dynamics in early human embryogenesis inferred from somatic mutation
Seongyeol Park, Nanda Maya Mali, Ryul Kim, Jeong‐Woo Choi, Junehawk Lee, Joonoh Lim, Jung Min Park, Jung Woo Park, Dong-Hyun Kim, Taewoo Kim, Kijong Yi, June Hyug Choi
SJR Q1Nature
Cancer ResearchBiochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology
5
Article|87 citations·2021
Mutational spectrum of SARS-CoV-2 during the global pandemic
Kijong Yi, Su Yeon Kim, Thomas Bleazard, Taewoo Kim, Jeonghwan Youk, Young Seok Ju
SJR Q1Experimental & Molecular MedicineOA

Viruses accumulate mutations under the influence of natural selection and host-virus interactions. Through a systematic comparison of 351,525 full viral genome sequences collected during the recent COVID-19 pandemic, we reveal the spectrum of SARS-CoV-2 mutations. Unlike those of other viruses, the mutational spectrum of SARS-CoV-2 exhibits extreme asymmetry, with a much higher rate of C>U than U>C substitutions, as well as a higher rate of G>U than U>G substitutions. This suggests directional g

GeneticsBiochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology
6
Article|76 citations·2016
Complex chromosomal rearrangements by single catastrophic pathogenesis in NUT midline carcinoma
Jake June-Koo Lee, Sandra Louzada, Yu An, Seon Young Kim, Seungtaek Kim, Jeonghwan Youk, S. Park, Sun Hoe Koo, Bhumsuk Keam, Yoon Kyung Jeon, Ja‐Lok Ku, Fengtang Yang
SJR Q1Annals of OncologyOA

Taken together, our findings suggest that a single catastrophic event in proliferating normal cells could be sufficient for neoplastic transformation into NMCs.

Molecular BiologyBiochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology
7
Article|63 citations·2023
Widespread somatic L1 retrotransposition in normal colorectal epithelium
Chang Hyun Nam, Jeonghwan Youk, Jeong Yeon Kim, Joonoh Lim, Jung Woo Park, Soo A Oh, Hyun Jung Lee, Ji Won Park, Hyein Won, Yunah Lee, Seung‐Yong Jeong, Dong-Sung Lee
SJR Q1NatureOA

Abstract Throughout an individual’s lifetime, genomic alterations accumulate in somatic cells 1–11 . However, the mutational landscape induced by retrotransposition of long interspersed nuclear element-1 (L1), a widespread mobile element in the human genome 12–14 , is poorly understood in normal cells. Here we explored the whole-genome sequences of 899 single-cell clones established from three different cell types collected from 28 individuals. We identified 1,708 somatic L1 retrotransposition e

Plant ScienceAgricultural and Biological Sciences
8
Article|44 citations·2021
Patient‐derived organoids as a preclinical platform for precision medicine in colorectal cancer
Young‐Won Cho, Dong‐Wook Min, Hwang‐Phill Kim, Yohan An, Sheehyun Kim, Jeonghwan Youk, Jaeyoung Chun, Jong Pil Im, Sang‐Hyun Song, Young Seok Ju, Sae‐Won Han, Kyu Joo Park
SJR Q1Molecular OncologyOA

Patient-derived organoids are being considered as models that can help guide personalized therapy through in vitro anticancer drug response evaluation. However, attempts to quantify in vitro drug responses in organoids and compare them with responses in matched patients remain inadequate. In this study, we investigated whether drug responses of organoids correlate with clinical responses of matched patients and disease progression of patients. Organoids were established from 54 patients with col

OncologyMedicine
9
Article|41 citations·2020
The genome-wide landscape of C:G > T:A polymorphism at the CpG contexts in the human population
Jeonghwan Youk, Yohan An, Seongyeol Park, Jake June-Koo Lee, Young Seok Ju
SJR Q1BMC GenomicsOA

BACKGROUND: The C:G > T:A substitution at the CpG dinucleotide contexts is the most frequent substitution type in genome evolution. The mutational process is obviously ongoing in the human germline; however, its impact on common and rare genomic polymorphisms has not been comprehensively investigated yet. Here we observed the landscape and dynamics of C:G > T:A substitutions from population-scale human genome sequencing datasets including ~ 4300 whole-genomes from the 1000 Genomes and the pan-ca

Cancer ResearchBiochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology
10
Article|38 citations·2017
Depletion of nerve growth factor in chemotherapy-induced peripheral neuropathy associated with hematologic malignancies
Jeonghwan Youk, Young-Sook Kim, Jung‐Ah Lim, Dong-Yeop Shin, Young‐Il Koh, Soon‐Tae Lee, Inho Kim
SJR Q1PLoS ONEOA

OBJECTIVE: To investigate whether the depletion of nerve growth factor (NGF) is associated with the development of chemotherapy-induced peripheral neuropathy (CIPN) in patients with hematologic malignancy. METHODS: We prospectively enrolled hematologic cancer patients who had a plan to receive bortezomib, thalidomide, or vincristine. Baseline NGF levels were measured within one week before the start date of chemotherapy. Follow-up NGF levels were measured after four months from the start date of

OncologyMedicine
11
Article|32 citations·2024
Quantitative and qualitative mutational impact of ionizing radiation on normal cells
Jeonghwan Youk, Hyun Woo Kwon, Joonoh Lim, Eunji Kim, Taewoo Kim, Ryul Kim, Seongyeol Park, Kijong Yi, Chang Hyun Nam, Sara Jeon, Yohan An, Jinwook Choi
SJR Q1Cell GenomicsOA

The comprehensive genomic impact of ionizing radiation (IR), a carcinogen, on healthy somatic cells remains unclear. Using large-scale whole-genome sequencing (WGS) of clones expanded from irradiated murine and human single cells, we revealed that IR induces a characteristic spectrum of short insertions or deletions (indels) and structural variations (SVs), including balanced inversions, translocations, composite SVs (deletion-insertion, deletion-inversion, and deletion-translocation composites)

Cancer ResearchBiochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology
12
Article|29 citations·2018
FDG PET for Evaluation of Bone Marrow Status in T-Cell Lymphoma
Youngil Koh, Jung Min Lee, Go-Un Woo, Jin Chul Paeng, Jeonghwan Youk, Sung‐Soo Yoon, Inho Kim, Keon Wook Kang
SJR Q2Clinical Nuclear Medicine

PURPOSE: In T-cell lymphoma, the role of FDG PET for bone marrow (BM) evaluation is not established yet. We investigated diagnostic performance and prognostic implication of FDG PET for BM evaluation in peripheral T-cell lymphoma (PTCL) and extranodal NK/T-cell lymphoma (NKTCL). PATIENTS AND METHODS: Patients with PTCL or NKTCL, who underwent initial staging with FDG PET and BM biopsy, were retrospectively enrolled and analyzed. PET BM finding was evaluated using visual analysis and a quantitati

Pathology and Forensic MedicineMedicine
13
Article|29 citations·2019
Immune recurrence score using 7 immunoregulatory protein expressions can predict recurrence in stage I–III breast cancer patients
Dae‐Won Lee, Han Suk Ryu, Min‐Sun Jin, Kyung-Hun Lee, Koung Jin Suh, Jeonghwan Youk, Jung Youn Kim, Ahrum Min, Han‐Byoel Lee, Hyeong‐Gon Moon, Tae‐Yong Kim, Sae‐Won Han
SJR Q1British Journal of CancerOA

BACKGROUND: Immune cells in the tumour microenvironment play an essential role in tumorigenesis. This study aimed to evaluate the immunoregulatory protein expression of breast cancer and reveal their prognostic role. METHODS: Expression of 10 immune markers (PD-1/PD-L1/PD-L2/IDO/TIM-3/OX40/OX40L/B7-H2/ B7-H3/B7-H4) with known/possible clinical relevance was identified in stromal tumour-infiltrating lymphocytes or tumour tissue of stage I-III breast cancer patients. RESULTS: A total of 392 patien

OncologyMedicine
14
Review|21 citations·2021
Dissecting single-cell genomes through the clonal organoid technique
Jeonghwan Youk, Hyun Woo Kwon, Ryul Kim, Young Seok Ju
SJR Q1Experimental & Molecular MedicineOA

The revolution in genome sequencing technologies has enabled the comprehensive detection of genomic variations in human cells, including inherited germline polymorphisms, de novo mutations, and postzygotic mutations. When these technologies are combined with techniques for isolating and expanding single-cell DNA, the landscape of somatic mosaicism in an individual body can be systematically revealed at a single-cell resolution. Here, we summarize three strategies (whole-genome amplification, mic

Cancer ResearchBiochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology
15
Article|7 citations·2016
A scientific treatment approach for acute mast cell leukemia: using a strategy based on next-generation sequencing data
Jeonghwan Youk, Young‐Il Koh, Ji‐Won Kim, Dae-Yoon Kim, Hyunkyung Park, Woo June Jung, Kwang-Sung Ahn, Hongseok Yun, In Ho Park, Choong-Hyun Sun, Seungmook Lee, Sung‐Soo Yoon
SJR Q2Blood ResearchOA

BACKGROUND: Mast cell leukemia (MCL) is the most aggressive form of systemic mastocytosis disorders. Owing to its rarity, neither pathogenesis nor standard treatment is established for this orphan disease. Hence, we tried to treat a patient with MCL based on the exome and transcriptome sequencing results of the patient's own DNA and RNA. METHODS: First, tumor DNA and RNA were extracted from bone marrow at the time of diagnosis. Germline DNA was extracted from the patient's saliva 45 days after i

ImmunologyImmunology and Microbiology

Research Areas

Pulmonary and Respiratory MedicineNeurologyOncologyHematologyCancer ResearchMolecular Biology

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