Jennifer Davis
University of Kansas, KS·Medicine & Clinical Research
Obesity and poor metabolic health raise the risk of colorectal cancer (CRC) and may worsen its outcome. A new class of drugs called incretin mimetics has transformed treatment of type 2 diabetes and obesity.
- Fields
Medicine & Clinical Research
Pharmacology
Physiology
- Topics
colorectal cancer
colon cancer
tirzepatide
- Grants
- 1 known grant, through Jun 2028
What they work on
- Test whether tirzepatide, a dual GIP/GLP-1 receptor drug used for diabetes and obesity, lowers colorectal tumor formation and growth when given before tumor induction in diet-fed iKAP (inducible Kras, Apc, p53) mice.
- Test whether tirzepatide given after tumors have formed in iKAP mice on high- or low-fat diets increases tumor growth by raising SIRT1, a deacetylase enzyme linked to tumor metabolism.
- Compare high-fat and low-fat diet groups to see how diet-driven obesity and glucose tolerance shape tirzepatide's effects on colorectal cancer development and outcomes.
More about the research
These drugs copy gut hormones that control blood sugar and appetite. Because they are now so widely used, it matters whether they also change cancer risk or cancer growth, and this is not yet clear. This project tests tirzepatide, which activates two hormone receptors, GIP-1R and GLP-1R, in a mouse model of colorectal cancer.
Why it matters
Millions of people now take incretin drugs such as tirzepatide for diabetes and obesity, and some may have undetected colon lesions. This work could show whether starting tirzepatide before cancer helps prevent colorectal cancer, and whether giving it once a tumor exists could speed tumor growth through SIRT1. That knowledge could guide safer prescribing and colorectal cancer prevention in people with obesity.
Known grants
From NIH and NSF research grants. Labs often have other funding we can't see.
Closest labs
Elif Oral
University of Michigan, MI·Medicine & Clinical Research
Test in a randomized clinical trial whether tirzepatide, a drug that activates GLP1 and GIP gut-hormone receptors, improves body weight and fat mass in patients with familial partial lipodystrophy (FPLD).
Jonathan Campbell
Duke University, NC·Physiology
Test whether pericytes, cells lining blood vessels, are the main GIP receptor (GIPR)-expressing cells in fat tissue, using mouse models that mark and lineage-trace GIPR-positive cells over time.
Absalon Gutierrez
University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, TX·Medicine & Clinical Research
Identify molecular signatures of weight and energy-expenditure change after GLP-1 receptor agonist withdrawal using RNA sequencing and DNA methylation analysis of abdominal subcutaneous fat biopsies in 100 adults with obesity.
The school
University of Kansas: 26 labs on PI Pages, $546M a year on research, 351 research doctorates a year.
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