Paul Grippo, PhD

Paul Grippo, PhD, is Associate Professor in the Department of Medicine, Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, at the University of Illinois College of Medicine at UIC. He also serves as the Program Lead for early pipeline initiatives (high school, undergraduate, graduate and medical student programs) for the Cancer Center’s Cancer Research Training and Education Core. His research has focused on the design and utility of mouse models of cancer for more than 25 years. The Grippo Lab focuses on the contribution of inflammation and fibrosis on pancreatic cancer through contributions from certain cell signaling cascades including Kras, AKT/PI3K, TGFbeta and PEDF (Pigment Epithelium-Derived Factor). He was one of the first to target mutant KRAS to mouse pancreas, demonstrating that human KRAS expression in acinar cells results in acinar-to-ductal metaplasia together with pre-invasive lesions. His current emphasis is on identifying defects in signal transduction pathways in GI cancers that affect mutant KRAS-induced pancreatic neoplasia and APC loss-induced colon polyps in animal models and the impact of high fat diets and social stress on these signals. A recently awarded foundation grant will explore an earlier detection modality with potential use in endoscopy, which dovetails with a funded effort to inform and learn from communities with the highest burden of pancreatic cancer. In addition, he provides oversight, direction and personal instruction to trainees as part of several of the Cancer Center’s grant portfolio including two U54 mechanisms with education and training components and accompanying cores, and co-MPI on a National Institute of General Medical Sciences (NIGMS) T34 Bridges to the Baccalaureate program. He also serves as a mentor on the long-standing National Cancer Institute (NCI) T32 Cancer Health Equity and Career Development Program.