Sara Zanivan, Ph.D.

Scientific Director 

Dr. Sara Zanivan joined MD Anderson in December 2024 in a dual role as scientific director of the Proteomics Core and a principal investigator in Experimental Therapeutics. She brings more than 18 years of experience in MS-based proteomics, including 15 years as a principal investigator and more than a decade leading core facilities. Internationally recognized as an expert in proteomics and cancer biology, she frequently speaks at major scientific meetings.

Dr. Zanivan pioneered in vivo phosphoproteomics methodologies and developed innovative approaches to study cell secretomes and oxidative signaling dynamics. Her research focuses on how stromal-immune crosstalk drives tumor immunosuppression and strategies to reprogram these mechanisms for improved cancer therapy. In parallel, her lab advances MS-based technologies for biomarker discovery and early cancer detection.

Dominic Helm, Ph.D.

Facility Director 

Dr. Dominic Helm’s scientific career is rooted in a passion for advancing mass spectrometry-based proteomics to enable mechanistic insights and translational breakthroughs. He holds a master’s degree and a Ph.D. in molecular biotechnology from the Technical University of Munich (TUM), focusing on MS-based proteomics and quantitative workflows.

Dr. Helm further deepened his technical expertise as senior mass spectrometrist at the EMBL Proteomics Core Facility. This experience strengthened his ability to integrate advanced technologies into collaborative research environments.

Before joining MD Anderson in November 2025 as director of the Proteomics Core, Dr. Helm led the Proteomics Core Facility at the German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ) for almost six years. There, he pioneered high-throughput, automated sample preparation pipelines and secured major funding to expand advanced mass spectrometry capabilities. His work consistently bridged technology and biology, empowering researchers to tackle complex questions in cancer biology and precision medicine.

Huiling Liu, Ph.D., M.S.

Principal Research Scientist 

Dr. Huiling Liu joined the Proteomics Core in August 2025, bringing more than two decades of experience in mass spectrometry-based proteomics and a proven record of innovation across academic and industry settings. She holds deep technical expertise in LC-MS workflows and has consistently driven advancements in proteomics applications.

Before joining the core, Dr. Liu managed high-throughput workflows for cancer biomarker discovery at MD Anderson and spent nine years at Thermo Fisher Scientific, where she specialized in advanced LC-MS applications and global training initiatives. Her industry experience strengthened her ability to integrate cutting-edge technologies into scalable, reproducible workflows.

Barbara Helm, Ph.D.

Senior Research Scientist

Dr. Barbara Helm joined the team in January 2026, bringing extensive experience in mass spectrometry-based proteomics applied to oncology and translational research. She combines deep technical expertise with a strong record of implementing advanced workflows for clinical applications.

Before joining MD Anderson, Dr. Helm led LC-MS infrastructure development at the German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ, Heidelberg, Germany) and served as team leader for Clinical Proteomics at the Translational Lung Research Center Heidelberg. Her work focused on phosphoproteomics, targeted proteomics and biomarker discovery, with particular emphasis on designing and automating workflows for clinical samples.