# DYSBIOTIC MICROBIOME IN PANCREATITIS, DIABETES, AND PANCREATIC CANCER

> **NIH NIH U01** · BAYLOR COLLEGE OF MEDICINE · 2020 · $480,000

## Abstract

Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) is a highly fatal disease with an overall 5-year survival of <9%.
Progress in PDAC lags behind other cancers and there is a tremendous need to better understand the etiology
of PDAC in order to develop early diagnostic methods and better treatments. Pancreatic carcinogenesis is
driven by inflammation. Established risk factors for pancreatic cancer include chronic pancreatitis, diabetes,
obesity, and smoking, each associated with an inflammatory mechanism. However, these risk factors do not
fully explain the majority of pancreatic cancer cases. Emerging evidence suggests that variation in our ‘other
genome’—the collective genome of the microorganisms inhabiting our body, known as the microbiome—may
have an even greater role than the human genome variations in the pathogenesis of cancer. Recent discoveries
suggest that bacteria are likely to influence this process by activating immune receptors and perpetuating
cancer-associated inflammation. Further investigations are needed to fully understand the interaction between
inflammation and the microbiota in the development of this deadly disease.
 We propose to characterize the microbiota in saliva, stool, and pancreatic tissue from patients with chronic
pancreatitis and PDAC using next-generation sequencing protocols. We will characterize microbiota present in
the saliva, stool, and pancreatic tissue from each subject aiming to find correlative microbial signatures across
multiple body sites.
 The Alkek Center for Metagenomics and Microbiome Research at Baylor College of Medicine (BCM) is a
world leader in the study of the microbiome with innovative approaches and thus is ideally suited to coordinate
this study. In addition, the Elkins Pancreas Center (EPC) at BCM is eminently suited to be a collaborative
member of a national pancreatic research consortium. The EPC will provide access to a large population of
patients with pancreatitis and PDAC, and considerable experience in collaboration for the conduct of clinical
trials, sophisticated prospective data collection, and access to a mature tissue repository for studies proposed
by the Consortium.
 This project is timely and highly relevant to the goals of the NIH Roadmap and the NIH Human Microbiome
Project. This novel approach will allow us to create a pathogenic model for chronic pancreatitis and pancreatic
cancer that will offer innovative strategies for prevention, biomarkers for early detection, and targets for
intervention.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10074044
- **Project number:** 2U01DK108326-06
- **Recipient organization:** BAYLOR COLLEGE OF MEDICINE
- **Principal Investigator:** WILLIAM E FISHER
- **Activity code:** U01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2020
- **Award amount:** $480,000
- **Award type:** 2
- **Project period:** 2015-09-28 → 2025-06-30

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10074044

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10074044, DYSBIOTIC MICROBIOME IN PANCREATITIS, DIABETES, AND PANCREATIC CANCER (2U01DK108326-06). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-21 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10074044. Licensed CC0.

---

*[NIH grants dataset](/datasets/nih-grants) · CC0 1.0*