The Department of Urology recognizes the importance of conducting state-of-the-art basic and translational research by our faculty. Our research mission is to develop novel treatment ideas and bring technological advances more quickly to the patients. The Urology Department focuses on research that investigates bladder and prostate tumorigenesis and cancer biomarkers.
Department of Urology Research Faculty
- Victor Romanov, PhD
- Flaminia Talos, MD, PhD
- Zhaoqing Cong, PhD
- Glenn Werneburg, MD, PhD
Dr. Romanov’s research centers on the molecular mechanisms underlying bladder carcinogenesis, with emphasis on environmental genotoxins, tumor cell biology, and translational biomarker development. His work has characterized the genotoxic and cytotoxic impacts of environmental pollutants such as 3‑nitrobenzanthrone on urothelial cancer cells, elucidating pathways of DNA adduct formation, oxidative stress, and differential cellular responses.
Publications:
- Reshetnikova G, Sidorenko VS, Whyard T, Lukin M, Waltzer W, Takamura-Enye T, Romanov V. Genotoxic and cytotoxic effects of the environmental pollutant 3-nitrobenzanthrone on bladder cancer cells. Exp Cell Res. 2016 349(1):101-108.
- Gabig TG, Waltzer WC, Whyard T, Romanov V. Clostridium perfringens enterotoxin as a potential drug for intravesical treatment of bladder cancer. Biochem Biophys Res Commun. 2016 478(2):887-92.
- Whyard T, Waltzer WC, Waltzer D, Romanov V. Metabolic alterations in bladder cancer: applications for cancer imaging. Exp Cell Res. 2016 341(1):77-83.
- Whyard T, Liu J, Darras, F, Waltzer WC, Romanov V. Organoid model of urothelial cancer: establishment and applications for bladder cancer research. Biotechnigues 2020 69(3) 193-199.
- Whyard T, Gnatenko D, Forthys E, Liu X, Povcher O, Waltzer WC, Romanov V. Liquid Biopsy Analysis of FGFR3, TERT Promoter and STAG2 Hotspot Mutations for Disease Surveillance in Bladder Cancer. Cancer Oncology and Research 2020 3 (2) 3-7
- Du, C., Waltzer, W. C., Wilusz, J. E., Spaliviero, M., Darras, F., Romanov, V. Circular STAG2 RNA Modulates Bladder Cancer Progression via miR-145-5p/TAGLN2 and Is Considered as a Biomarker for Recurrence. Cancers 2024 16(5)
- Huang A., Waltzer, W., Hung, M., Darras, F., Kressel, A., Romanov, V. Identification of circCIAO1(5) and circMALAT1 as novel biomarkers for bladder cancer monitoring based on the binding to miR-101-3p. Cancers 2025
For a full list of publications by Victor Romanov - Click Here
Dr. Talos has elucidated clonal evolution and lineage plasticity in prostate cancer using multicolor lineage tracing and single-cell transcriptomics, uncovering immunomodulatory mechanisms driving aggressive disease. Her laboratory’s work has resulted in senior author publications and presentations at major national and international cancer meetings. Under a separate NCI R21 award, she has been extending reprogramming strategies toward de novo generation of urinary bladder tissue for regenerative medicine and cancer modeling.
To learn more about Dr. Talos' research, visit her website at www.ftaloslab.com.
Publications:
- Tshering L.F., Luo F., Russ S., Szenk M., Rubel D., Rail J., Tutuska K., Balázsi G., Shen M.M.*, Talos F*#. (2023) Immune mechanisms shape the clonal landscape during early progression of prostate cancer; Developmental Cell, (12):1071-1086.e8., (*corresponding author, # lead author)
- Luo F., Tshering L.F., Tutuska K., Szenk M., Rubel D., Rail J., Russ S., J. Liu, Nemajerova A., Balázsi G., Talos F*. A luminal intermediate cell state maintains long-term prostate homeostasis and contributes to tumorigenesis. (2023, Biorxiv preprint, revisions currently prepared for Nature Communications) (*corresponding author)
- Park JJ, Rageul J, Lo N, Patel JA, Talos F, Kim H. (2025) Loss of DNA replication fork protection by TIMELESS degradation supports oncogene-induced senescence. Biochem Biophys Res Commun. 2025 776:152203.
- Jin T., Talos F., Wang D. (2020) ECMarker: Interpretable machine learning model identifies gene expression biomarkers predicting clinical outcomes and reveals molecular mechanisms of human disease in early stages. Bioinformatics 23;37(8):1115-1124.
- Tshering L.F., Luo F., Nguyen N.D., Rail J.G., Jin T., Wang D., Talos F. (2021) Intratumor heterogeneity and clonal dynamics underlying treatment resistance in prostate cancer [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the AACR Annual Meeting 2021; Cancer Res 2021;81(13_Suppl): Abstract nr 3126
For a full list of all publications by Flaminia Talos - Click Here
Zhaoqing Cong, PhD, Research Assistant Professor, Department of Urology
Research:
Dr. Cong’s research is centered on pioneering nanoscale and molecular-level drug delivery platforms for cancer. He has significant expertise in drug delivery, clinical pharmacology, biomaterials, immunotherapy, and nanomedicine. He specifically focuses on peptide-based drug delivery systems and micro/nano-robotic medical systems for diverse diseases therapy. This novel microrobotic platform, which includes cell microrobots, herb medicine microrobots, and hydrogel microrobots, has demonstrated strong anti-tumor efficacy in bladder cancer models
To learn more about Dr. Cong's research, visit his website at www.zconglab.com
Publications:
- Chunlian Zhong, Menghuan Tang, and Zhaoqing Cong*. "Active Propelled Micro Robots in Drug Delivery for Urologic Diseases" Micromachines, 2026, 17,1: 24
- Phonpilas Thongpon, Menghuan Tang, Zhaoqing Cong*. “Peptide-Based Nanoparticle for Tumor Therapy”. Biomedicine. 2025, 13, 14154.
- Qingxin Yang, Wen Yuan, Tinghui Zhao, Yanixao Jiao, Menghuan Tang, Zhaoqing Cong*, Song Wu*. “Magnetic-Powered Spora Lygodii Microrobots Loaded with Doxorubicin for Active and Targeted Therapy of Bladder Cancer”, Drug Design, Development and Therapy, 2024, 490652 (Corresponding Author)
- Zhaoqing Cong*, Yangyang Li, Leiming Xie, Qiwei Chen, Menghuan Tang, Phonpilas Thongpon, Yanxiao Jiao, Song Wu*, “Engineered Microrobots for Targeted Delivery of Bacterial Outer Membrane Vesicles (OMV) in Thrombus Therapy.” Small, 2024, 2400847, doi: 10.1002/smll.202400847
- Yangyang Li†, Zhaoqing Cong†, Leiming Xie1, Songsong Tang, Chunyu Ren, Xiqi Peng, Daitian Tang, Fangchen Wan, Hong Han, Xueji Zhang, Wei Gao, Song Wu. "Magnetically Powered Immunogenic Macrophage Microrobots for Targeted Multimodal Cancer Therapy." Small, 2023: 2301489. (Equal contribution, Frontispiece)
For a full list of all publications by Zhaoqing Cong - Click Here
Glenn Werneburg, MD, PhD, Assistant Professor, Departments of Urology and Microbiology & Immunology
Research:
Dr. Werneburg directs a translational research program at the host-pathogen interface of urologic infection. His laboratory's work spans bacterial pathogenesis, the urinary microbiome, catheter and device biofilm, and bladder physiology, with the aim of understanding, curing, and preventing urinary tract infection, recurrent UTI, and catheter-associated UTI.
To learn more about Dr. Werneburg's research, click here.
Selected Recent Publications
- Miller, A. W., Jeong, S. H., McSweeney, S., Vasavada, S. P., & Werneburg, G. T. (2026). Urinary Peptide Signatures Distinguish Overactive Bladder and are Associated with Improvement in Incontinence Following Therapy. Urology.
- Werneburg, G. T., Gross, M. D., Hettel, D. R., Lyon, M., Jeong, S. H., McSweeney, S., ... & Miller, A. W. (2026). Urinary Microbiome and Metabolome Differentiate Overactive Bladder From the Physiological State, and Reflect Recent Antibiotic Use and Treatment Response. The Journal of Urology, 216(1), 78-88.
- Harding, C., Da Silva, A., Khasriya, R., Khullar, V., Lombardo, R., Malde, S., ... & Werneburg, G. (2026). Is There Adequate Evidence for Intracellular Bacteria Being a Significant Cause of rUTIs and Thereby Justifying Targeted Treatments Such as Bladder Fulguration or Intravesical Therapies? ICI‐RS 2025. Neurourology and Urodynamics, 45(5), 914-921.
- Cameron, A. P., & Werneburg, G. T. (2025). Foley catheter management: a review. JAMA surgery, 160(6), 701-707.
- Jeong, S. H., Vasavada, S. P., Lashner, B., & Werneburg, G. T. (2025). Fecal microbiota transplant is associated with resolution of recurrent urinary tract infection. Urology.