AUSTIN — The Cancer Prevention and Research Institute of Texas (CPRIT) today awarded 71 new grants totaling close to $136 million to advance the fight against cancer. This total includes 58 academic research grant awards, 10 prevention awards, and 3 product development research awards.
“CPRIT’s priorities of pediatric cancer research and cancers of significance to Texans highlight this large slate of awards,” said Wayne Roberts, CPRIT Chief Executive Officer. “Investments are made across the cancer research and prevention continuum in Texas unlike any other state in the country.”
With Childhood Cancer Awareness Month approaching in September, this round of awards illustrates CPRIT’s commitment to curing pediatric cancer. Nine grants awarded today address childhood cancers, including six academic research grants for brain cancer, Ewing’s sarcoma, and leukemia and lymphoma. A product development Seed Award goes to Rapamcycin Holdings, Inc. to study ways to limit the toxicity of treating colon polyps in teenagers that lead to colon cancer later in life. Several prevention grants address HPV in adolescents and provide vaccinations. Twelve percent of CPRIT’s portfolio goes to childhood cancer research – proportionately 3 times more than the national commitment.
The first ever awards are made for CPRIT’s “Collaborative Action Program for Liver Cancer” (CAP), a new statewide initiative investing up to $18 million to reverse the rising rates of liver cancer or hepatocellular cancer (HCC). Dr. Hashem El-Serag of Baylor College of Medicine will receive the Collaborative Action Center award, which promotes and encourages interaction, data sharing, and best practices among stakeholders to develop transformative initiatives to prevent liver cancer. Also, the first of six investigator-initiated awards associated with the CAP is made for research into the increased incidence, disparities and risk factors of HCC. Texans of Hispanic ethnicity living along the US-Mexico border have more than twice the incidence rate of liver cancer than non-Hispanic whites.
Fifteen recruitment grants go to Texas institutions, a mechanism that serves as an important tool for attracting the best minds in cancer research to the state. In addition, one company will relocate to Texas to continue their work in product development. CPRIT has now brought 181 scholars and 13 companies to Texas.
See the attached list for all academic research, prevention, and product development grants awarded.
About the Cancer Prevention and Research Institute of Texas
To date, CPRIT has awarded $2.4 billion in grants to Texas research institutions and organizations through its academic research, prevention, and product development research programs. CPRIT has recruited 181 distinguished researchers, supported the establishment, expansion or relocation of 36 companies to Texas, and generated over $3 billion in additional public and private investment. CPRIT funding has advanced scientific and clinical knowledge and provided 5.7 million life-saving cancer prevention and early detection services reaching Texans from all 254 counties. In May 2019, the Texas Legislature approved a constitutional amendment for the November 5, 2019 general election ballot to authorize an additional $3 billion in bonds for cancer research and prevention.
Learn more at cprit.texas.gov. Follow CPRIT on Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn.
AWARDED RESEARCH GRANTS
Individual Investigator Research Awards — Six grants totaling $5,397,483
The University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center
- Defining and enabling delivery of microRNA and CRISPR therapeutics for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) (Daniel J. Siegwart) — $900,000
- Structure-based Drug Design of Inhibitors for a Breast Cancer Signature Kinase (Elizabeth J. Goldsmith) — $900,000
- The role of ZMYND8 in breast cancer stem cells and tumor progression (Weibo Luo) — $900,000
- Role of the N6-methyladenosine (m6A) writer METTL3/METTL14 in cancer (Yunsun Nam) — $900,000
The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center
- Regulation of CD8 T cell responses in antitumor immunity (Shao-Cung Sun) — $900,000
The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston
- Characterization and optimization of novel allosteric KRAS inhibitors (Alemayehu A. Gorfe) — $897,483
Individual Investigator Awards for Cancer in Children and Adolescents — Two grants totaling $1,921,306
Texas A&M University System Health Science Center
- A mouse model for studying DIPG initiation and progression in the pons (Zhigang Xie) — $721,306
The University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center
- Biochemical and Genetic Interrogation of EWSR1-FLI1 in Ewing Sarcoma (David G. McFadden) — $1,200,000
Individual Investigator Research Awards for Computational Biology — Two grants totaling $1,792,157
The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio
- Predicting drug response from genomic data using deep learning methods (Yidong Chen) — $892,157
The University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center
- Dissecting cellular heterogeneity of bulk tumors for prediction of overall survival and responsive patients to immunotherapy (Tao Wang) — $900,000
Collaborative Action Program to Reduce Liver Cancer Mortality in Texas: Collaborative Action Center Award — One grant totaling $3,000,000
Baylor College of Medicine
- The Texas Collaborative Center for Hepatocellular Cancer (Hashem B. El-Serag) — $3,000,000
Collaborative Action Program to Reduce Liver Cancer Mortality in Texas: Investigator-Initiated Research Awards - One grant totaling $2,456,676
The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center
- Patient-centered liver cancer prevention in the Houston community (Jessica Hwang) — $2,456,676
Core Facility Support Awards — Eight grants totaling $35,495,696
Baylor College of Medicine
- New Capabilities for Cancer Research in the TMC CryoEM Cores (Steven J. Ludtke) — $5,381,089
Texas A&M University Health Science Center Institute of Biosciences and Technology
- Gulf Coast Consortium High-throughput Flow Cytometry Program (HtFCP) (Margarita Martinez-Moczygemba) — $4,690,019
Texas Medical Center
- Business-Driven Accelerator for Cancer Therapeutics (BDACT) (William McKeon) — $5,440,894
Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center
- TTUHSC Cancer Animal Facility (Scott L. Trasti) — $3,183,703
The University of Texas at Austin
- High Performance Mass Spectrometry Imaging Core Facility (Jennifer S. Brodbelt) — $3,794,611
The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston
- Advanced Cancer Antibody Drug Modalities Core Facility (Zhiqiang An) — $5,949,072
The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center
- Recombinant Antibody Production Core (RAPC) at Science Park (Kevin McBride) — $3,505,385
The University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston
- A Targeted Proteomics and Metabolomics Mass Spectrometry Core Facility at the University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston (William K. Russell) — $3,550,923
Early Translational Research Awards — Five grants totaling $7,599,384
Baylor College of Medicine
- Novel endoscope-cleaning port for minimally invasive cancer surgery (Bryan M. Burt) — $1,349,759
Texas Tech University
- Engineering a prototype for label-free separation and staining-free detection of circulating tumor cells (Siva A. Vanapalli) — $657,222
The University of Texas at Dallas
- Smart Surgical Microscope Powered by AI Technology and Hyperspectral Imaging (Baowei Fei) — $1,592,405
The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston
- Discovery and development of novel peptibody-drug conjugate for treating cancers of the digestive system (Qingyun Liu) — $2,000,000
The University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center
- Development of an antibody targeting PCDH7 for lung cancer therapy (Kathryn A. O’Donnell) — $1,999,998
High Impact High Risk Award — Eighteen grants totaling $3,597,195
Baylor College of Medicine
- Topical Esomeprazole for Radiation-induced Dermatitis (Yohannes T. Ghebre) — $199,500
- Targeting cancer associated fibroblasts with anti-IL-11-secreting CAR T cells (Robin Parihar) — $199,920
Baylor Research Institute
- Targeting ROR-gt:IL-17 pathway to inhibit colon cancer (Venuprasad K. Poojary) — $199,942
The Methodist Hospital Research Institute
- Development of a mini-pig glioma model and validation of human clinical relevance (Robert Rostomily) — $200,000
Texas AgriLife Research
- Mechanisms of exosomal cell entry and signaling in cancer (Jean-Phillipe Pellois) — $200,000
Texas A&M University
- Development of a novel class of PRC2 inhibitors comprised of mirror image RNA (Jonathan T. Sczepanski) — $200,000
Texas A&M University System Health Science Center
- Real-time analyses of metabolic synergy between cancer and stromal cells by optogenetic control of cell signaling (Fen Wang) — $200,000
Texas Southern University
- Alleviating SN-38-induced late-onset diarrhea by preserving local UGTs in the colon (Song Gao) — $200,000
Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center
- Chemoprevention of acquired therapeutic resistance and disease recurrence in ovarian cancer (Komaraiah Palle) — $200,000
The University of Texas at Arlington
- Radioactive Nanoseeds for Eradicating Glioblastoma without Crossing Blood-Brain Barrier (Yaowu Hao) — $198,039
The University of Texas at Austin
- Nanosized immunotherapies to access and treat pediatric medulloblastoma (Jennifer A. Maynard) — $200,000
The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston
- Expression landscape and biomedical significance of transfer RNAs in cancer (Leng Han) — $199,998
The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio
- Mechanism-based targeting of core module of the BAF complex in cancer (Yogesh K. Gupta) — $199,996
The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center
- Epithelial memory of resolved inflammation as a driver of pancreatic cancer progression (Andrea Viale) — $199,804
The University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston
- A novel cellular-level imaging approach to assess payload drug distribution in tumors following administration of targeted drug delivery systems (Brendan Prideaux) — $199,996
- Targeting ARNT and RBFOX2 alternative splicing as a novel treatment modality in lymphoid malignancies (Casey W. Wright) — $200,000
The University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center
- Therapeutic Targeting of EWS-FLI1 Turnover in Ewing Sarcoma (Ralf Kittler) — $200,000
University of Houston
- Novel High-Throughput Microfluidic Device for Isolating T-cells Directly from Whole Blood to Simplify Manufacturing of Cellular Therapies (Sergey S. Shevkoplyas) — $200,000
Recruitment of Established Investigator Awards* — One grant totaling $6,000,000
- Christopher Flowers, MD, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center from Emory University School of Medicine — $6,000,000
Recruitment of First-Time, Tenure-Track Faculty Members Awards* — Fourteen grants totaling $27,669,997
- Piya Ghose, PhD, Recruitment to The University of Texas at Arlington from The Rockefeller University — $2,000,000
- Gerta Hoxhaj, PhD, Recruitment to The University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center from Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health — $2,000,000
- Umesh Jadhav, PhD, Recruitment to Baylor College of Medicine from Dana-Farber Cancer Institute — $2,000,000
- Stanley Lee, PhD, Recruitment to Baylor College of Medicine from Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center — $2,000,000
- Ang Li, MD, Recruitment to Baylor College of Medicine from University of Washington — $2,000,000
- Jiaozhi (George) Lu, PhD, Recruitment to Rice University from California Institute of Technology — $2,000,000
- Kevin Nead, MD, MPhil, Recruitment to The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center from the University of Pennsylvania — $2,000,000
- Benjamin Sabari, PhD, Recruitment to The University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center from Massachusetts Institute of Technology — $2,000,000
- Anju Sreelatha, PhD, Recruitment to The University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center from The University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center — $2,000,000
- Alison Taylor, PhD, Recruitment to The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center from Dana-Farber Cancer Institute — $2,000,000
- Mackenzie Wehner, MD, MPhil, Recruitment to The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center from University of Pennsylvania — $2,000,000
- Urbain Weyemi, PhD, Recruitment to The University of Texas at Austin from Johns Hopkins University — $2,000,000
- Vicky Yao, PhD, Recruitment to Rice University from Princeton University — $1,669,997
- Jian Zhou, PhD, Recruitment to The University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center from Simons Foundation — $2,000,000
*Recruitment grants awarded indicate only approval to negotiate offers; at the time of release candidates have not accepted offers.
AWARDED PREVENTION GRANTS
Tobacco Control and Lung Cancer Screening Awards — Two grants totaling $1,999,960
The University of Texas at Austin
- Centralized outreach to promote smoking cessation and lung cancer screening in vulnerable adult patients in a safety net system (Michael Pignone) — $999,962
The University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center
- Integrated lung cancer screening and tobacco cessation in an urban safety-net system (David E. Gerber) — $999,998
Expansion of Cancer Prevention Services to Rural and Medically Underserved Populations Awards — Six grants totaling $11,203,292
Baylor College of Medicine
- Expanding a Community Network for Cancer Prevention to Increase HPV Vaccine Uptake and Tobacco Prevention in a Medically Underserved Pediatric Population (Jane R. Montealegre) — $1,287,834
The Rose
- Empower Her To Care Expansion (FY2020-FY2021): Increasing Access to Breast Cancer Screening and the Continuum of Care for Underserved Texas Women (Bernice Joseph) — $1,999,452
Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center at El Paso
- Tiempo de Vacunarte (Time to Get Vaccinated) 2 (Jennifer C. Molokwu) — $1,963,826
The University of Texas at San Antonio
- Expansion of the Building a Healthy Temple Cancer Prevention Program in Bexar County and Rio Grande Valley (Meizi He) — $1,999,503
The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston
- Salud en Mis Manos: Delivering Evidence-Based Breast & Cervical Cancer Prevention Services to Latinas in Underserved Texas South and Gulf Coast Communities (Lara S. Savas) — $1,999,953
The University of Texas Health Science Center at Tyler
- Expanding Colorectal Cancer Screenings Throughout East Texas (Paul McGaha) — $1,952,724
Evidence-Based Cancer Prevention Services Awards — One grant totaling $999,276
Legacy Community Health Services
- Increasing Breast and Colorectal Cancer Screening Rates for the Medically Underserved using Population Health Strategies at a Multi-County FQHC (Charlene Flash) — $999,276
Dissemination of CPRIT-Funded Cancer Control Interventions Awards — One grant totaling $299,966
The University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center
- The Dissemination of a Genetic Navigation Framework for Hereditary Cancers to Increase Mutation Carrier Identification and Improve Outcomes (Theodora S. Ross) — $295,453
AWARDED PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT GRANTS
Company Relocation Awards — One grant totaling $7,446,844
Perimeter Medical Imaging Corp
- OTIS (optical tissue imaging system) Impact on Final Positive Margin Rates in Breast Conserving Surgery (Andrew Berkeley) — $7,446,844
Texas Company Product Development Research Award — One grant totaling $15,427,699
OncoNano Medicine
- Tumor specific T-cell activating cancer vaccines for immunotherapy of solid tumors including HPV (Ravi Srinivasan) — $15,427,699
Seed Awards for Product Development Research — One grant totaling $3,000,000
Rapamycin Holdings Inc.
- Emtora Biosciences - using eRapa to treat Familial Adenomatous Polyposis (FAP) (Daniel Hargrove) — $3,000,000
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