Research in the Uppaluri laboratory focuses on the development and study of high-fidelity models of oral squamous cell carcinoma and translational applications of findings therein. A major effort in the laboratory has focused on molecular determinants of aggressiveness in oral squamous cell carcinomas (OSCC) that has lead to identification of (1) novel molecular signature that allow patient outcomes stratification (2) previously unexplored pathways in tumor cell aggressive growth and metastasis and (3) direct translational efforts in patients with oral cancer.