Nicholas Woods
University of Nebraska Medical Center, NE·Medicine & Clinical Research
Pancreatic cancer, specifically pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC), is among the deadliest cancers. It often resists chemotherapy because tumors adapt.
- Fields
Medicine & Clinical Research
Pharmacology
Biochemistry
- Topics
pancreatic cancer
pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma
health disparities
- Grants
- 1 known grant, through May 2028
What they work on
- Test whether Tazemetostat, which blocks the gene-silencing complex PRC2, prevents chemotherapy-induced shifts in tumor subtype, using organoids grown from tumors of Black and White PDAC patients.
- Determine whether drugs targeting disparity-linked pathways, Tazemetostat and the complement inhibitor Avacopan, slow PDAC growth and change subtype features in patient-derived mouse models.
- Examine whether lowering RNF2 activity raises the subtype gene GATA6 and pushes tumors toward the more chemotherapy-sensitive Classical subtype, using proteomic subtyping of racially diverse models.
More about the research
Black patients develop PDAC more often and survive for shorter times than White patients, even when income and tumor stage are taken into account. This raises the possibility that tumors in different groups differ at the molecular level. Those differences could point to new drug targets.
Why it matters
Black patients with pancreatic cancer get the disease more often and survive less long than White patients. Because Tazemetostat and Avacopan are already FDA approved, positive results could move quickly into early-phase clinical trials. Shifting tumors toward a more chemotherapy-sensitive subtype, or blocking inflammation linked to drug resistance, could improve outcomes and help reduce this disparity.
Known grants
From NIH and NSF research grants. Labs often have other funding we can't see.
Closest labs
Saunjoo Yoon
University of Florida, FL·Pharmacology
Test the effectiveness of 4NSGnpcetu, anti-EGFR antibody-coated nanoparticles carrying a modified gemcitabine, in patient-derived pancreatic cancer organoids with stroma and in primary tumor cells from patients.
Wantong Yao
University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, TX·Medicine & Clinical Research
Define the molecular pathways through which a newly identified stress-response regulator helps pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) cells survive nutrient shortage, low oxygen and oxidative stress, and evade the immune system.
Pankaj Singh
University of Oklahoma-Health Sciences Center, OK·Biochemistry
Test whether blocking PADI1, an enzyme that chemically modifies arginine in proteins, or its downstream metabolic pathways prevents FOLFIRINOX resistance in pancreatic cancer cells, organoids and patient-derived xenografts.
The school
University of Nebraska Medical Center: 20 labs on PI Pages, $657M a year on research, 82 research doctorates a year.
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