Giulio F. Draetta, M.D., Ph.D.
Department of Genomic Medicine, Division of Cancer Medicine
In the News
Present Title & Affiliation
Primary Appointment
Senior Vice President, Chief Scientific Officer, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX
Professor, Department of Genomic Medicine, Division of Cancer Medicine, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX
Sewell Family Chair, Department of Genomic Medicine, Division of Cancer Medicine, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX
Sewell Family Distinguished University Chair, Department of Genomic Medicine, Division of Cancer Medicine, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX
Education & Training
Degree-Granting Education
| 1985 | University of Naples Medical School, Naples, ITA, PHD, Clinical Pathology and Biochemistry |
| 1981 | University of Naples Medical School, Naples, ITA, MD, Medicine |
Postgraduate Training
| 1986-1987 | Robertson Fellow, Genetics, Biochemistry, Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, New York, NY |
| 1983-1986 | Fogarty International Center Fellow, National Institutes of Health, National Cancer Institute, Laboratory of Biochemistry, Bethesda, MD |
| 1982-1983 | Clinical Fellow, Internal / Emergency Medicine, University of Naples Medical School, Naples |
| 1976-1981 | Intern, Institute of Biochemistry, Medical School, Naples |
Experience & Service
Academic Appointments
Professor, Department of Molecular and Cellular Oncology, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, 2013 - 2016
Professor, Department of Genomic Medicine, Division of Cancer Medicine, University of Texas Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences, Houston, TX, 2012 - Present
Professor of Biochemistry, University of Milan, Bicocca, Milan, 1999 - Present
Administrative Appointments/Responsibilities
Chief Scientific Officer, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, 2019 - Present
Chief Academic Officer, ad interim, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, 2017 - 2018
Sr. Vice President and Head, Therapeutics Discovery Division, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, 2017 - 2019
Vice President, Therapeutics Discovery, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, 2017 - 2017
VP, ad interim, Therapeutics Discovery, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, 2016 - 2017
VP for Operations, Strategic Research Programs ad interim, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, 2013 - 2016
Director, Department of Institute for Applied Cancer Science, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, 2011 - 2016
Deputy Director for Science, Belfer Institute for Applied Cancer Science, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, MA, 2008 - 2011
Vice-President and Worldwide Basic Franchise Head, Oncology, Merck Research Laboratories, Boston, MA, 2007 - 2008
Executive Director and Worldwide Head, Basic Research, Merck Research Laboratories, Boston, MA, 2004 - 2006
Executive Director, Cancer Research, Merck Research Laboratories, Pomezia, 2004 - Present
Vice President and Head, Oncology R&D, Nerviano Medical Science (NMS), Nerviano, Milan, 2004 - Present
Executive Director and Site Head, Pharmacia Discovery Research Europe, Milan, 2002 - 2004
Director and Site Head, Pharmacia Oncology Research, Milan, 2002 - Present
Director, Therapeutic Area Team, Pharmacia Oncology, Milan, 2001 - Present
Director, Department of Worldwide Oncology Pharmacology, Pharmacia & Upjohn Oncology Research, Milan, 1999 - 2000
Other Appointments/Responsibilities
Chief Research Business Development Officer, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, MA, 2009 - 2011
Presidential Scholar, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, MA, 2008 - 2011
Founding Member and Division Director of the Department of Experimental Oncology, European Institute of Oncology, Milan, 1996 - 1999
Founder and Vice President, Biological Research, Mitotix, Inc, Cambridge, MA, 1993 - 1995
Selected Publications
Peer-Reviewed Articles
- Genovese G, Carugo A, Tepper J, Robinson FS, Li L, Svelto M, Nezi L, Corti D, Minelli R, Pettazzoni P, Gutschner T, Wu CC, Seth S, Akdemir KC, Leo E, Amin S, Molin MD, Ying H, Kwong LN, Colla S, Takahashi K, Ghosh P, Giuliani V, Muller F, Dey P, Jiang S, Garvey J, Liu CG, Zhang J, Heffernan TP, Toniatti C, Fleming JB, Goggins MG, Wood LD, Sgambato A, Agaimy A, Maitra A, Roberts CW, Wang H, Viale A, DePinho RA, Draetta GF, Chin L. Synthetic vulnerabilities of mesenchymal subpopulations in pancreatic cancer. Nature 542(7641):362-366, 2017. e-Pub 2017. PMID: 28178232.
- Carugo A, Genovese G, Seth S, Nezi L, Rose JL, Bossi D, Cicalese A, Shah PK, Viale A, Pettazzoni PF, Akdemir KC, Bristow CA, Robinson FS, Tepper J, Sanchez N, Gupta S, Estecio MR, Giuliani V, Dellino GI, Riva L, Yao W, Di Francesco ME, Green T, D'Alesio C, Corti D, Kang Y, Jones P, Wang H, Fleming JB, Maitra A, Pelicci PG, Chin L, DePinho RA, Lanfrancone L, Heffernan TP, Draetta GF. In Vivo Functional Platform Targeting Patient-Derived Xenografts Identifies WDR5-Myc Association as a Critical Determinant of Pancreatic Cancer. Cell Rep 16(1):133-47, 2016. e-Pub 2016. PMID: 27320920.
- Pettazzoni P, Viale A, Shah P, Carugo A, Ying H, Wang H, Genovese G, Seth S, Minelli R, Green T, Huang-Hobbs E, Corti D, Sanchez N, Nezi L, Marchesini M, Kapoor A, Yao W, Francesco ME, Petrocchi A, Deem AK, Scott K, Colla S, Mills GB, Fleming JB, Heffernan TP, Jones P, Toniatti C, DePinho RA, Draetta GF. Genetic events that limit the efficacy of MEK and RTK inhibitor therapies in a mouse model of KRAS-driven pancreatic cancer. Cancer Res 75(6):1091-101, 2015. e-Pub 2015. PMID: 25736685.
- Viale A, Pettazzoni P, Lyssiotis CA, Ying H, Sánchez N, Marchesini M, Carugo A, Green T, Seth S, Giuliani V, Kost-Alimova M, Muller F, Colla S, Nezi L, Genovese G, Deem AK, Kapoor A, Yao W, Brunetto E, Kang Y, Yuan M, Asara JM, Wang YA, Heffernan TP, Kimmelman AC, Wang H, Fleming JB, Cantley LC, DePinho RA, Draetta GF. Oncogene ablation-resistant pancreatic cancer cells depend on mitochondrial function. Nature 514(7524):628-32, 2014. e-Pub 2014. PMID: 25119024.
- Kapoor A, Yao W, Ying H, Hua S, Liewen A, Wang Q, Zhong Y, Wu CJ, Sadanandam A, Hu B, Chang Q, Chu GC, Al-Khalil R, Jiang S, Xia H, Fletcher-Sananikone E, Lim C, Horwitz GI, Viale A, Pettazzoni P, Sanchez N, Wang H, Protopopov A, Zhang J, Heffernan T, Johnson RL, Chin L, Wang YA, Draetta G, DePinho RA. Yap1 activation enables bypass of oncogenic Kras addiction in pancreatic cancer. Cell 158(1):185-197, 2014. e-Pub 2014. PMID: 24954535.
- Ellwood-Yen K, Keilhack H, Kunii K, Dolinski B, Connor Y, Hu K, Nagashima K, O'Hare E, Erkul Y, Di Bacco A, Gargano D, Shomer NH, Angagaw M, Leccese E, Andrade P, Hurd M, Shin MK, Vogt TF, Northrup A, Bobkova EV, Kasibhatla S, Bronson RT, Scott ML, Draetta G, Richon V, Kohl N, Blume-Jensen P, Andersen JN, Kraus M. PDK1 attenuation fails to prevent tumor formation in PTEN-deficient transgenic mouse models. Cancer Res 71(8):3052-65, 2011. PMID: 21493594.
- Busino L, Bassermann F, Maiolica A, Lee C, Nolan PM, Godinho SI, Draetta GF, Pagano M. SCFFbxl3 controls the oscillation of the circadian clock by directing the degradation of cryptochrome proteins. Science 316(5826):900-4, 2007. e-Pub 2007. PMID: 17463251.
- Squatrito M, Mancino M, Donzelli M, Areces LB, Draetta GF. EBP1 is a nucleolar growth-regulating protein that is part of pre-ribosomal ribonucleoprotein complexes. Oncogene 23(25):4454-65, 2004. PMID: 15064750.
- Donzelli M, Busino L, Chiesa M, Ganoth D, Hershko A, Draetta GF. Hierarchical order of phosphorylation events commits Cdc25A to betaTrCP-dependent degradation. Cell Cycle 3(4):469-71, 2004. e-Pub 2004. PMID: 14752276.
- Busino L, Donzelli M, Chiesa M, Guardavaccaro D, Ganoth D, Dorrello NV, Hershko A, Pagano M, Draetta GF. Degradation of Cdc25A by beta-TrCP during S phase and in response to DNA damage. Nature 426(6962):87-91, 2003. PMID: 14603323.
- Montagnoli A, Fiore F, Eytan E, Carrano AC, Draetta GF, Hershko A, Pagano M. Ubiquitination of p27 is regulated by Cdk-dependent phosphorylation and trimeric complex formation. Genes Dev 13(9):1181-9, 1999. PMID: 10323868.
- Loda M, Cukor B, Tam SW, Lavin P, Fiorentino M, Draetta GF, Jessup JM, Pagano M. Increased proteasome-dependent degradation of the cyclin-dependent kinase inhibitor p27 in aggressive colorectal carcinomas. Nat Med 3(2):231-4, 1997. PMID: 9018245.
- Pagano M, Tam SW, Theodoras AM, Beer-Romero P, Del Sal G, Chau V, Yew PR, Draetta GF, Rolfe M. Role of the ubiquitin-proteasome pathway in regulating abundance of the cyclin-dependent kinase inhibitor p27. Science 269(5224):682-5, 1995. PMID: 7624798.
- Hoffmann I, Draetta G, Karsenti E. Activation of the phosphatase activity of human cdc25A by a cdk2-cyclin E dependent phosphorylation at the G1/S transition. EMBO J 13(18):4302-10, 1994. PMID: 7523110.
- Baldin V, Lukas J, Marcote MJ, Pagano M, Draetta G. Cyclin D1 is a nuclear protein required for cell cycle progression in G1. Genes Dev 7(5):812-21, 1993. PMID: 8491378.
- Hoffmann I, Clarke PR, Marcote MJ, Karsenti E, Draetta G. Phosphorylation and activation of human cdc25-C by cdc2--cyclin B and its involvement in the self-amplification of MPF at mitosis. EMBO J 12(1):53-63, 1993. PMID: 8428594.
- Pagano M, Pepperkok R, Verde F, Ansorge W, Draetta G. Cyclin A is required at two points in the human cell cycle. EMBO J 11(3):961-71, 1992. PMID: 1312467.
- Draetta G, Piwnica-Worms H, Morrison D, Druker B, Roberts T, Beach D. Human cdc2 protein kinase is a major cell-cycle regulated tyrosine kinase substrate. Nature 336(6201):738-44, 1988. PMID: 2462672.
- Draetta G, Beach D. Activation of cdc2 protein kinase during mitosis in human cells: cell cycle-dependent phosphorylation and subunit rearrangement. Cell 54(1):17-26, 1988. PMID: 3289755.
- Draetta G, Brizuela L, Potashkin J, Beach D. Identification of p34 and p13, human homologs of the cell cycle regulators of fission yeast encoded by cdc2+ and suc1+. Cell 50(2):319-25, 1987. PMID: 3297353.
Grant & Contract Support
| Title: | Eradication of treatment-resistant pancreatic cancer stem cells |
| Funding Source: | UTMDACC Khalifa Bin Zayed Al Nahyan Center for Pancreatic Cancer Research |
| Role: | Principal Investigator |
| Title: | Developing a novel oxidative phosphorylation inhibitor in pancreatic cancer |
| Funding Source: | American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) |
| Role: | Co-Principal Investigator |
| Title: | Cancer Center Support Grant-Developmental Therapeutics Program |
| Funding Source: | NIH/NCI |
| Role: | Co-Investigator |
| Title: | CCSG Multidisciplinary Research Program |
| Funding Source: | NIH/NCI |
| Role: | Co-Investigator |
| Title: | Pancreatic Cancer Moon Shot |
| Funding Source: | UT MD Anderson Cancer Center/Philanthropic Gifts |
| Role: | Co-Principal Investigator |
| Title: | The Nexus of Epigenetics and Immune-oncology: Translational Research to Develop Combined Therapies |
| Funding Source: | DOD/Congressionally Directed Medical Research Programs (DOD/CDMRP) |
| Role: | Principal Investigator |
| Title: | Identifying new epigenetic vulnerabilities in pancreatic cancer |
| Funding Source: | Cancer Prevention & Research Institute of Texas (CPRIT) |
| Role: | Principal Investigator |
| Title: | Defining and Defeating Mechanistic Subtypes of KRAS-mutant Lung Cancers-Preclinical and Pathology Core |
| Funding Source: | Cancer Prevention & Research Institute of Texas (CPRIT) |
| Role: | Co-Investigator |
| Title: | Genetics and Biology of Pancreatic Ductal Adenocarcinoma |
| Funding Source: | NIH/NCI |
| Role: | Co-Principal Investigator |
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CV information above last modified October 04, 2024
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