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Best Scientists
2025
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Molecular Biology
USA
2026

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Best Scientists

D-Index
191
Citations
150836
World Ranking
400
National Ranking
266

Molecular Biology

D-Index
189
Citations
146656
World Ranking
26
National Ranking
18

Medicine

D-Index
197
Citations
157267
World Ranking
208
National Ranking
139

Research.com Recognitions

  • 2026 - Research.com Molecular Biology in United States Leader Award
  • 2025 - Research.com Best Scientists Award
  • 2025 - Research.com Molecular Biology in United States Leader Award
  • 2024 - Research.com Genetics and Molecular Biology in United States Leader Award
  • 2023 - Research.com Molecular Biology in United States Leader Award
  • 2014 - Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)
  • 2012 - Member of the National Academy of Sciences
  • 2010 - Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences
  • 2009 - Szent-Györgyi Prize for Progress in Cancer Research, National Foundation for Cancer Research (NFCR)
  • 2004 - Member of the National Academy of Medicine (NAM)
  • Lisbon Academy of Sciences (Academia das Ciências de Lisboa)
  • Member of the Association of American Physicians
  • Lisbon Academy of Sciences (Academia das Ciências de Lisboa)
  • Member of the Association of American Physicians
  • Lisbon Academy of Sciences (Academia das Ciências de Lisboa)
  • Member of the Association of American Physicians
  • Lisbon Academy of Sciences (Academia das Ciências de Lisboa)
  • Member of the Association of American Physicians
  • Lisbon Academy of Sciences (Academia das Ciências de Lisboa)
  • Member of the Association of American Physicians

Overview

Ronald A. DePinho is affiliated with The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center in the United States. Their research spans multiple disciplines within medicine and biochemistry, genetics, and molecular biology, with a significant focus on oncology, molecular biology, cancer research, immunology, and physiology.

The scientist's recent published papers reflect a concentrated interest in cancer biology and aging, with notable works including:

  • Telomeres: history, health, and hallmarks of aging, 2021, Cell
  • Genetic and biological hallmarks of colorectal cancer, 2021, Genes & Development
  • Fungal mycobiome drives IL-33 secretion and type 2 immunity in pancreatic cancer, 2022, Cancer Cell
  • Cancer Stemness Meets Immunity: From Mechanism to Therapy, 2021, Cell Reports
  • Circadian Regulator CLOCK Recruits Immune-Suppressive Microglia into the GBM Tumor Microenvironment, 2020, Cancer Discovery

Frequent co-authors collaborating with DePinho include Denise J. Spring, Jiexi Li, Yanru Wang, Deepavali Chakravarti, and Kyle A. LaBella. These collaborations indicate a networked research environment supporting multidisciplinary investigations.

The scientist's work is often published in venues known for cancer and genetic research, including:

  • Cancer Research
  • bioRxiv (Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory)
  • Cancer Discovery
  • Genes & Development
  • UNC Libraries

Primary fields of study involve Medicine and Biochemistry, Genetics, and Molecular Biology, with subfields that concentrate mainly on Oncology, Molecular Biology, Cancer Research, Immunology, and Physiology.

DePinho's main topics of research address various aspects of cancer biology and therapy, including:

  • Cancer Immunotherapy and Biomarkers
  • Immune cells in cancer
  • Pancreatic and Hepatic Oncology Research
  • Cancer, Hypoxia, and Metabolism
  • Epigenetics and DNA Methylation
  • Ferroptosis and cancer prognosis
  • Telomeres, Telomerase, and Senescence

The scientist has earned several distinctions, including fellowship in the American Association for the Advancement of Science (2014), membership in the National Academy of Sciences (2012), fellowship in the American Academy of Arts and Sciences (2010), and membership in the National Academy of Medicine (2004). Additional recognitions include the Szent-Györgyi Prize for Progress in Cancer Research awarded by the National Foundation for Cancer Research in 2009, membership in the Association of American Physicians, and acknowledgment by the Lisbon Academy of Sciences (Academia das Ciências de Lisboa).

Best Publications

  • Malignant astrocytic glioma: genetics, biology, and paths to treatment.

    Frank B. Furnari;Tim Fenton;Robert M. Bachoo;Akitake Mukasa

  • Telomere Shortening and Tumor Formation by Mouse Cells Lacking Telomerase RNA

    María A. Blasco;María A. Blasco;Han Woong Lee;M. Prakash Hande;Enrique Samper

  • ERKs: A family of protein-serine/threonine kinases that are activated and tyrosine phosphorylated in response to insulin and NGF

    Teri G. Boulton;Steven H. Nye;David J. Robbins;Nancy Y. Ip

  • Hepatocellular carcinoma pathogenesis: from genes to environment

    Paraskevi A. Farazi;Paraskevi A. Farazi;Ronald A. DePinho

  • The Kinase LKB1 Mediates Glucose Homeostasis in Liver and Therapeutic Effects of Metformin

    Reuben J. Shaw;Reuben J. Shaw;Katja A. Lamia;Debbie Vasquez;Seung Hoi Koo;Seung Hoi Koo

  • International network of cancer genome projects

    Thomas J. Hudson;Thomas J. Hudson;Warwick Anderson;Axel Aretz;Anna D. Barker

  • The tumor suppressor LKB1 kinase directly activates AMP-activated kinase and regulates apoptosis in response to energy stress

    Reuben J. Shaw;Monica Kosmatka;Nabeel Bardeesy;Rebecca L. Hurley

  • The Ink4a Tumor Suppressor Gene Product, p19Arf, Interacts with MDM2 and Neutralizes MDM2's Inhibition of p53

    Jason Pomerantz;Nicole Schreiber-Agus;Nanette J. Liégeois;Adam Silverman

  • Oncogenic Kras maintains pancreatic tumors through regulation of anabolic glucose metabolism

    Haoqiang Ying;Alec C. Kimmelman;Costas A. Lyssiotis;Sujun Hua

  • The oncogene and Polycomb-group gene bmi-1 regulates cell proliferation and senescence through the ink4a locus

    Jacqueline J. L. Jacobs;Karin Kieboom;Silvia Marino;Ronald A DePinho

  • Role of the INK4a locus in tumor suppression and cell mortality

    Manuel Serrano;Han Woong Lee;Lynda Chin;Carlos Cordon-Cardo

  • Glutamine supports pancreatic cancer growth through a Kras-regulated metabolic pathway

    Jaekyoung Son;Costas A. Lyssiotis;Costas A. Lyssiotis;Haoqiang Ying;Xiaoxu Wang

  • HDAC2 negatively regulates memory formation and synaptic plasticity

    Ji Song Guan;Stephen J. Haggarty;Emanuela Giacometti;Jan Hermen Dannenberg;Jan Hermen Dannenberg

  • FoxOs are critical mediators of hematopoietic stem cell resistance to physiologic oxidative stress.

    Zuzana Tothova;Zuzana Tothova;Ramya Kollipara;Brian J. Huntly;Benjamin H. Lee;Benjamin H. Lee

  • Genetics and biology of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma

    Haoqiang Ying;Prasenjit Dey;Wantong Yao;Alec C. Kimmelman

  • Longevity, stress response, and cancer in aging telomerase-deficient mice.

    Karl Lenhard Rudolph;Sandy Chang;Han Woong Lee;Maria Blasco

  • Tumor Evolution of Glioma-Intrinsic Gene Expression Subtypes Associates with Immunological Changes in the Microenvironment.

    Qianghu Wang;Baoli Hu;Xin Hu;Xin Hu;Hoon Kim

  • Pancreatic cancer biology and genetics

    Nabeel Bardeesy;Ronald A. DePinho

  • Essential role of mouse telomerase in highly proliferative organs

    Han Woong Lee;Han Woong Lee;Maria A. Blasco;Maria A. Blasco;Geoffrey J. Gottlieb;James W. Horner

  • Malignant glioma: Genetics and biology of a grave matter

    Elizabeth A. Maher;Frank B. Furnari;Robert M. Bachoo;David H. Rowitch

Frequent Co-Authors

Lynda Chin
Lynda Chin The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston
Jihye Paik
Jihye Paik Cornell University
Haoqiang Ying
Haoqiang Ying The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center
Nabeel Bardeesy
Nabeel Bardeesy Harvard University
Florian L. Muller
Florian L. Muller The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center
Cameron Brennan
Cameron Brennan Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center
Alexei Protopopov
Alexei Protopopov The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center
Frederick W. Alt
Frederick W. Alt Boston Children's Hospital
Norman E. Sharpless
Norman E. Sharpless National Institutes of Health
Diego H. Castrillon
Diego H. Castrillon The University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center

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