Andrea Griesinger, MS

Research Scientist, Pediatrics-Heme/Onc and Bone Marrow Transplantation

Faculty Photo
Graduate Schools
  • MS, University of Cincinnati (2011)
  • PhD, University of Colorado Denver (2025)
Undergraduate School
  • BS, Colorado School of Mines (CO) (2009)
Languages
English, German
Department
Pediatrics-Heme/Onc and Bone Marrow Transplantation

Professional Titles

  • Research Scientist

Recognitions

  • Pediatric Cancer Research Award, 20th International Symposium on Pediatric Neuro-Oncology (2022)
    Highest ranked abstract: Tumor associated myeloid cells drive immunobiology of high risk pediatric ependymoma

Research Interests

My primary focus is on pediatric posterior fossa ependymoma tumor and immunobiology. I am also highly experienced in pediatric ependymoma preclinical models and development of new therapeutic strategies. I am also involved in a variety pediatric brain tumor research in the Morgan Adam's Foundation Pediatric Brain Tumor Research Team, including collection and analysis of biological correlative studies from pediatric brain tumor clinical trials.

Publications

  • Natarajan SK, Lum J, Skeans JH, Nenwani M, Eyunni S, Mota M, Bayliss JM, Deogharkar A, Hamanishi ET, Pun M, Sweha SR, Hoffman S, Young E, Zhang Q, Mehta R, Animasahun O, Narayanan P, Sunil S, Parolia A, Sajjakulnukit P, Panwalkar P, Doherty R, Clausen M, Dang D, Hawes D, Yang F, Santi M, Judkins AR, Wilson Y, Vigil T, Franson A, Mortensen RM, Ozawa T, Griesinger A, Holland EC, Foreman NK, Michealraj KA, Agnihotri S, Taylor M, Gilbertson RJ, Koschmann C, Chinnaiyan AM, Lyssiotis CA, Nagrath D, Venneti S. ZFTA-RELA ependymomas make itaconate to epigenetically drive fusion expression. Nature. 2026 Apr;652(8111):1004-1015. PubMed PMID: 41639460
  • Griesinger AM, Widener M, Donson AM, Mettetal A, Hankinson TC, Handler M, Mulcahy Levy JM, Lindsay HB, Macy ME, Foreman NK, Dorris K. Molecular biology and phase 1 study of GM-CSF and intrathecal trastuzumab in children with recurrent -posterior fossa ependymoma. Neuro Oncol. 2026 Jul 1;28(7):1783-1793. PubMed PMID: 41920921
  • Zahedi S, Riemondy K, Liu T, Griesinger AM, Donson AM, Apfelbaum AA, Fu R, Grandvallet Contreras J, Crespo M, DeSisto J, Groat MM, Bratbak E, Green A, Hankinson TC, Handler M, Vibhakar R, Willard N, Foreman NK, Phang T, Mulcahy Levy J. Multi-pronged analysis of pediatric low-grade glioma and ganglioglioma reveals a unique tumor microenvironment associated with BRAF alterations. Brain Pathol. 2025 Nov;35(6):e70023. PubMed PMID: 40588233
  • de Sousa GR, Calzadilla AJ, Grimaldo E, Donson AM, Sobral LM, Jones KM, Liu T, Amani V, Venkataraman S, Dahl NA, Levy JMM, Phang T, Vibhakar R, Hankinson T, Handler M, Valera ET, Foreman NK, Griesinger AM. Loss of LDOC1 by chromatin compaction in mesenchymal tumor cells is required for PFA1 ependymoma growth. Neuro Oncol. 2025 Jul 30;27(6):1597-1610. PubMed PMID: 39901723
  • DeSisto J, Donson AM, Griesinger AM, Fu R, Riemondy K, Mulcahy Levy J, Siegenthaler JA, Foreman NK, Vibhakar R, Green AL. Tumor and immune cell types interact to produce heterogeneous phenotypes of pediatric high-grade glioma. Neuro Oncol. 2024 Mar 4;26(3):538-552. PubMed PMID: 37934854
  • Griesinger AM, Calzadilla AJ, Grimaldo E, Donson AM, Amani V, Pierce AM, Steiner J, Kargar S, Serkova NJ, Bertrand KC, Wright KD, Vibhakar R, Hankinson T, Handler M, Lindsay HB, Foreman NK, Dorris K. Development of Chromosome 1q+ Specific Treatment for Highest Risk Pediatric Posterior Fossa Ependymoma. Clin Cancer Res. 2024 Apr 15;30(8):1544-1554. PubMed PMID: 38334950
  • Donson AM, Bertrand KC, Riemondy KA, Gao D, Zhuang Y, Sanford B, Norris GA, Chapman RJ, Fu R, Willard N, Griesinger AM, Ribeiro de Sousa G, Amani V, Grimaldo E, Hankinson TC, Booker F, Sill M, Grundy RG, Pajtler KW, Ellison DW, Foreman NK, Ritzmann TA. Significant increase of high-risk chromosome 1q gain and 6q loss at recurrence in posterior fossa group A ependymoma: A multicenter study. Neuro Oncol. 2023 Oct 3;25(10):1854-1867. PubMed PMID: 37246777
  • Grob ST, Miller KR, Sanford B, Donson AM, Jones K, Griesinger AM, Amani V, Foreman NK, Liu A, Handler M, Hankinson TC, Milgrom S, Levy JMM. Genetic predictors of neurocognitive outcomes in survivors of pediatric brain tumors. J Neurooncol. 2023 Oct;165(1):161-169. PubMed PMID: 37878192
  • Crotty EE, Wilson AL, Davidson T, Tahiri S, Gust J, Griesinger AM, Venkataraman S, Park JR, Mueller S, Rood BR, Hwang EI, Wang LD, Vitanza NA. Cellular Therapy for Children with Central Nervous System Tumors: Mining and Mapping the Correlative Data. Curr Oncol Rep. 2023 Aug;25(8):847-855. PubMed PMID: 37160547
  • Fu R, Norris GA, Willard N, Griesinger AM, Riemondy KA, Amani V, Grimaldo E, Harris F, Hankinson TC, Mitra S, Ritzmann TA, Grundy RR, Foreman NK, Donson AM. Spatial transcriptomic analysis delineates epithelial and mesenchymal subpopulations and transition stages in childhood ependymoma. Neuro Oncol. 2023 Apr 6;25(4):786-798. PubMed PMID: 36215273
  • Riemondy KA, Venkataraman S, Willard N, Nellan A, Sanford B, Griesinger AM, Amani V, Mitra S, Hankinson TC, Handler MH, Sill M, Ocasio J, Weir SJ, Malawsky DS, Gershon TR, Garancher A, Wechsler-Reya RJ, Hesselberth JR, Foreman NK, Donson AM, Vibhakar R. Neoplastic and immune single-cell transcriptomics define subgroup-specific intra-tumoral heterogeneity of childhood medulloblastoma. Neuro Oncol. 2022 Feb 1;24(2):273-286. PubMed PMID: 34077540
  • Panwalkar P, Tamrazi B, Dang D, Chung C, Sweha S, Natarajan SK, Pun M, Bayliss J, Ogrodzinski MP, Pratt D, Mullan B, Hawes D, Yang F, Lu C, Sabari BR, Achreja A, Heon J, Animasahun O, Cieslik M, Dunham C, Yip S, Hukin J, Phillips JJ, Bornhorst M, Griesinger AM, Donson AM, Foreman NK, Garton HJL, Heth J, Muraszko K, Nazarian J, Koschmann C, Jiang L, Filbin MG, Nagrath D, Kool M, Korshunov A, Pfister SM, Gilbertson RJ, Allis CD, Chinnaiyan AM, Lunt SY, Blüml S, Judkins AR, Venneti S. Targeting integrated epigenetic and metabolic pathways in lethal childhood PFA ependymomas. Sci Transl Med. 2021 Oct 6;13(614):eabc0497. PubMed PMID: 34613815
  • Gillen AE, Riemondy KA, Amani V, Griesinger AM, Gilani A, Venkataraman S, Madhavan K, Prince E, Sanford B, Hankinson TC, Handler MH, Vibhakar R, Jones KL, Mitra S, Hesselberth JR, Foreman NK, Donson AM. Single-Cell RNA Sequencing of Childhood Ependymoma Reveals Neoplastic Cell Subpopulations That Impact Molecular Classification and Etiology. Cell Rep. 2020 Aug 11;32(6):108023. PubMed PMID: 32783945
  • Moreira DC, Venkataraman S, Subramanian A, Desisto J, Balakrishnan I, Prince E, Pierce A, Griesinger A, Green A, Eberhardt CG, Foreman NK, Vibhakar R. Targeting MYC-driven replication stress in medulloblastoma with AZD1775 and gemcitabine. J Neurooncol. 2020 May;147(3):531-545. PubMed PMID: 32180106
  • Alimova I, Pierce A, Danis E, Donson A, Birks DK, Griesinger A, Foreman NK, Santi M, Soucek L, Venkataraman S, Vibhakar R. Inhibition of MYC attenuates tumor cell self-renewal and promotes senescence in SMARCB1-deficient Group 2 atypical teratoid rhabdoid tumors to suppress tumor growth in vivo. Int J Cancer. 2019 Apr 15;144(8):1983-1995. PubMed PMID: 30230537
  • Pierce AM, Witt DA, Donson AM, Gilani A, Sanford B, Sill M, Van Court B, Oweida A, Prince EW, Steiner J, Danis E, Dorris K, Hankinson T, Handler MH, Jones KL, Karam SD, Serkova NJ, Vibhakar R, Foreman NK, Griesinger AM. Establishment of patient-derived orthotopic xenograft model of 1q+ posterior fossa group A ependymoma. Neuro Oncol. 2019 Dec 17;21(12):1540-1551. PubMed PMID: 31276586
  • Witt DA, Donson AM, Amani V, Moreira DC, Sanford B, Hoffman LM, Handler MH, Levy JMM, Jones KL, Nellan A, Foreman NK, Griesinger AM. Specific expression of PD-L1 in RELA-fusion supratentorial ependymoma: Implications for PD-1-targeted therapy. Pediatr Blood Cancer. 2018 May;65(5):e26960. PubMed PMID: 29350470
  • Donson AM, Amani V, Warner EA, Griesinger AM, Witt DA, Levy JMM, Hoffman LM, Hankinson TC, Handler MH, Vibhakar R, Dorris K, Foreman NK. Identification of FDA-Approved Oncology Drugs with Selective Potency in High-Risk Childhood Ependymoma. Mol Cancer Ther. 2018 Sep;17(9):1984-1994. PubMed PMID: 29925527
  • Donson AM, Apps J, Griesinger AM, Amani V, Witt DA, Anderson RCE, Niazi TN, Grant G, Souweidane M, Johnston JM, Jackson EM, Kleinschmidt-DeMasters BK, Handler MH, Tan AC, Gore L, Virasami A, Gonzalez-Meljem JM, Jacques TS, Martinez-Barbera JP, Foreman NK, Hankinson TC. Molecular Analyses Reveal Inflammatory Mediators in the Solid Component and Cyst Fluid of Human Adamantinomatous Craniopharyngioma. J Neuropathol Exp Neurol. 2017 Sep 1;76(9):779-788. PubMed PMID: 28859336
  • Griesinger AM, Witt DA, Grob ST, Georgio Westover SR, Donson AM, Sanford B, Mulcahy Levy JM, Wong R, Moreira DC, DeSisto JA, Balakrishnan I, Hoffman LM, Handler MH, Jones KL, Vibhakar R, Venkataraman S, Foreman NK. NF-?B upregulation through epigenetic silencing of LDOC1 drives tumor biology and specific immunophenotype in Group A ependymoma. Neuro Oncol. 2017 Oct 1;19(10):1350-1360. PubMed PMID: 28510691
  • Amani V, Donson AM, Lummus SC, Prince EW, Griesinger AM, Witt DA, Hankinson TC, Handler MH, Dorris K, Vibhakar R, Foreman NK, Hoffman LM. Characterization of 2 Novel Ependymoma Cell Lines With Chromosome 1q Gain Derived From Posterior Fossa Tumors of Childhood. J Neuropathol Exp Neurol. 2017 Jul 1;76(7):595-604. PubMed PMID: 28863455
  • Prince EW, Balakrishnan I, Shah M, Mulcahy Levy JM, Griesinger AM, Alimova I, Harris PS, Birks DK, Donson AM, Davidson N, Remke M, Taylor MD, Handler MH, Foreman NK, Venkataraman S, Vibhakar R. Checkpoint kinase 1 expression is an adverse prognostic marker and therapeutic target in MYC-driven medulloblastoma. Oncotarget. 2016 Aug 16;7(33):53881-53894. PubMed PMID: 27449089
  • Griesinger AM, Josephson RJ, Donson AM, Mulcahy Levy JM, Amani V, Birks DK, Hoffman LM, Furtek SL, Reigan P, Handler MH, Vibhakar R, Foreman NK. Interleukin-6/STAT3 Pathway Signaling Drives an Inflammatory Phenotype in Group A Ependymoma. Cancer Immunol Res. 2015 Oct;3(10):1165-74. PubMed PMID: 25968456
  • Venkataraman S, Alimova I, Balakrishnan I, Harris P, Birks DK, Griesinger A, Amani V, Cristiano B, Remke M, Taylor MD, Handler M, Foreman NK, Vibhakar R. Inhibition of BRD4 attenuates tumor cell self-renewal and suppresses stem cell signaling in MYC driven medulloblastoma. Oncotarget. 2014 May 15;5(9):2355-71. PubMed PMID: 24796395
  • Hoffman LM, Donson AM, Nakachi I, Griesinger AM, Birks DK, Amani V, Hemenway MS, Liu AK, Wang M, Hankinson TC, Handler MH, Foreman NK. Molecular sub-group-specific immunophenotypic changes are associated with outcome in recurrent posterior fossa ependymoma. Acta Neuropathol. 2014 May;127(5):731-45. PubMed PMID: 24240813
  • Levy JM, Thompson JC, Griesinger AM, Amani V, Donson AM, Birks DK, Morgan MJ, Mirsky DM, Handler MH, Foreman NK, Thorburn A. Autophagy inhibition improves chemosensitivity in BRAF(V600E) brain tumors. Cancer Discov. 2014 Jul;4(7):773-80. PubMed PMID: 24823863
  • Griesinger AM, Donson AM, Foreman NK. Immunotherapeutic implications of the immunophenotype of pediatric brain tumors. Oncoimmunology. 2014 Jan 1;3(1):e27256. PubMed PMID: 24575386
  • Griesinger AM, Birks DK, Donson AM, Amani V, Hoffman LM, Waziri A, Wang M, Handler MH, Foreman NK. Characterization of distinct immunophenotypes across pediatric brain tumor types. J Immunol. 2013 Nov 1;191(9):4880-8. PubMed PMID: 24078694
  • Chou FS, Griesinger A, Wunderlich M, Lin S, Link KA, Shrestha M, Goyama S, Mizukawa B, Shen S, Marcucci G, Mulloy JC. The thrombopoietin/MPL/Bcl-xL pathway is essential for survival and self-renewal in human preleukemia induced by AML1-ETO. Blood. 2012 Jul 26;120(4):709-19. PubMed PMID: 22337712
  • Mizukawa B, Wei J, Shrestha M, Wunderlich M, Chou FS, Griesinger A, Harris CE, Kumar AR, Zheng Y, Williams DA, Mulloy JC. Inhibition of Rac GTPase signaling and downstream prosurvival Bcl-2 proteins as combination targeted therapy in MLL-AF9 leukemia. Blood. 2011 Nov 10;118(19):5235-45. PubMed PMID: 21940819
  • Chou FS, Wunderlich M, Griesinger A, Mulloy JC. N-Ras(G12D) induces features of stepwise transformation in preleukemic human umbilical cord blood cultures expressing the AML1-ETO fusion gene. Blood. 2011 Feb 17;117(7):2237-40. PubMed PMID: 21200020
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Personal Interests
As a Colorado native, I enjoy being outside during all seasons. Hiking and camping during the warmer months and snowboarding during the winter and spring months.

Volunteer Activities
2012-present: Research liaison for The Morgan Adams Foundation Attend fundraising events, participate in lunch & learn sessions, an provide lab tours for donors 2017-present: Volunteer for Family Science Night at Gold Camp Elementary Run a science-based activities table

Public Speaking
Yes
I have given several platform presentations at National and International Pediatric Brain Tumor conferences, as well as at several local high schools.