# Disrupting macrophage metabolism to reduce immunosuppression and enhance therapy in pancreatic cancer

> **NIH NIH R00** · UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA-IRVINE · 2020 · $248,999

## Abstract

Project Summary/Abstract
Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDA) has the worst five-year survival rate of any major cancer. The
lethality of PDA is largely due to a lack of effective treatment options. Several barriers in PDA treatment are
conferred by the presence of immunosuppressive myeloid cells, which are highly represented in these tumors.
This immune suppression, driven largely by myeloid cells, renders PDA refractory to immunotherapy which has
proven effective in other solid tumors. Consequently, the elimination or reprogramming of these myeloid cells
offers potential avenues to provide a much-needed breakthrough for the treatment of patients with PDA.
The working hypothesis of this proposal is that interruption of the metabolic mechanisms driving immune
suppression will sensitize pancreatic cancer to immunotherapy. This will be examined in three parts. First, core
metabolic pathways in myeloid cells programmed by PDA cells will be identified and the requirement of these
programs for functionality will be tested (Aim 1). Next, the metabolic mechanisms by which these myeloid cells
mediate immune suppression will be investigated using human and murine co-culture, organoid, and in vivo
systems (Aim 2). Finally, these interactions will be targeted in tumor models coupled with checkpoint inhibitors
to determine the translational value of these approaches (Aim 3).
The mentored phase of this career development award will be overseen by Drs. Costas Lyssiotis and Weiping
Zou at the University of Michigan Medical School. In addition, Drs. Gabriel Nunez, Marina Pasca di Magliano,
and Charles Burant will serve as a postdoctoral advisory committee. Together, the mentorship team has set forth
a career development plan focused on research, collaboration, grantsmanship, presentation, mentorship, and
the acquisition of management skills necessary to run an independent research program. This will be carried out
utilizing the exceptional resources available at the University of Michigan.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10245783
- **Project number:** 4R00CA241357-02
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA-IRVINE
- **Principal Investigator:** Christopher J. Halbrook
- **Activity code:** R00 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2020
- **Award amount:** $248,999
- **Award type:** 4N
- **Project period:** 2020-09-30 → 2023-08-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10245783

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10245783, Disrupting macrophage metabolism to reduce immunosuppression and enhance therapy in pancreatic cancer (4R00CA241357-02). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-22 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10245783. Licensed CC0.

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