Phillip Dumesic, MD, PhD
Assistant Professor
Diabetes Center
School of Medicine
We study how genes determine cellular decisions in energy metabolism, how organisms coordinate such decisions to maintain energy balance, and how new therapies might modulate these processes to treat diseases such as obesity, diabetes, sarcopenia, and cachexia. We apply genetics, biochemistry, and physiology—all driven by individual curiosity and diverse ways of thought.
Awards
Show all (13) Hide
- Rising Star in Diabetes and Obesity Research, Barnstable Brown Diabetes Center, 2023
- K99/R00 Pathway to Independence Award, NIDDK, 2021-2027
- Fellowship Award, Damon Runyon Cancer Research Foundation, 2017-2021
- Kaluza Prize Finalist, American Society for Cell Biology, 2015
- Teaching Award, UCSF Tetrad Graduate Program, 2011
- Dean's Prize in Research, UCSF School of Medicine, 2009
- Research Award, Stanford Program in Epithelial Biology, 2006
- Firestone Medal for Excellence in Research, Stanford University, 2006
- J.E. Wallace Sterling Award for Scholastic Achievement, Stanford University, 2006
- Goldwater Scholarship, Barry Goldwater Scholarship and Excellence in Education Foundation, 2005
- Deans' Award for Academic Accomplishment, Stanford University, 2005
- Hoefer Prize for Excellence in Undergraduate Writing, Stanford University, 2004
- President's Award for Academic Excellence, Stanford University, 2003
Education & Training
Show all (5) Hide
- Postdoctoral Metabolism Dana-Farber Cancer Institute 2024
- Postdoctoral Biochemistry University of California 2017
- MD Medicine University of California 2016
- PhD Genetics University of California 2014
- BS Biological Sciences Stanford University 2006
Interests
Show all (8) Hide
- Metabolism
- Gene regulation
- Biochemistry
- Obesity
- Diabetes
- Metabolic disease
- Genetics
- Molecular biology
Websites
Show all (2) Hide
- Department Profile (diabetes.ucsf.edu)
- Dumesic Lab Website (dumesiclab.org)
Grants and Projects
Show all (2) Hide
- Control of adipocyte metabolism and pro-inflammatory potential through privileged mRNA translation, Larry L. Hillblom Foundation Startup Grant, 2025-2028
- Translational regulation of PGC1a and oxidative metabolism, NIDDK, 2024-2027
Publications (31)
Top publication keywords:
DNA Transposable ElementsSpliceosomesSignal Recognition ParticleNucleosomesFungal ProteinsRNA, Small InterferingDNA, FungalPeroxisome Proliferator-Activated Receptor Gamma Coactivator 1-alphaCryptococcus neoformansDNA (Cytosine-5-)-MethyltransferasesRNA InterferenceRNA, FungalPolycomb-Group ProteinsOpen Reading Frames5' Untranslated Regions
-
ATP Hydrolysis by the SNF2 Domain of Dnmt5 Is Coupled to Both Specific Recognition and Modification of Hemimethylated DNA.
Molecular cell 2020 Dumesic PA, Stoddard CI, Catania S, Narlikar GJ, Madhani HD -
Product binding enforces the genomic specificity of a yeast polycomb repressive complex.
Cell 2014 Dumesic PA, Homer CM, Moresco JJ, Pack LR, Shanle EK, Coyle SM, Strahl BD, Fujimori DG, Yates JR, Madhani HD -
Stalled spliceosomes are a signal for RNAi-mediated genome defense.
Cell 2013 Dumesic PA, Natarajan P, Chen C, Drinnenberg IA, Schiller BJ, Thompson J, Moresco JJ, Yates JR, Bartel DP, Madhani HD -
Cardiac adaptation to endurance exercise training requires suppression of GDF15 via PGC-1a.
Nature cardiovascular research 2025 Khetarpal SA, Li H, Vitale T, Rhee J, Challa S, Castro C, Pabel S, Sun Y, Liu J, Bogoslavski D, Vargas-Castillo A, Smythers AL, Blackmore KA, Grauvogel L, Mittenbühler MJ, Khandekar MJ, Curtin C, … -
POLYCYSTIC OVARY SYNDROME: ORIGINS AND IMPLICATIONS: Gestational anti-Müllerian hormone and testosterone excess combined with maternal adiposity program for polycystic ovary syndrome.
Reproduction (Cambridge, England) 2025 Abbott DH, Levine JE, Dumesic PA, Padmanabhan V, Dumesic DA
Show all (26 more) Hide
-
RBM43 controls PGC1α translation and a PGC1α-STING signaling axis.
Cell metabolism 2025 Dumesic PA, Wilensky SE, Bose S, Van Vranken JG, Gygi SP, Spiegelman BM -
p38α kinase governs muscle strength through PGC1α in mice.
Acta physiologica (Oxford, England) 2024 Herrera-Melle L, Cicuéndez B, López JA, Dumesic PA, Wilensky SE, Rodríguez E, Leiva-Vega L, Caballero A, León M, Vázquez J, Spiegelman BM, Folgueira C, Mora A, Sabio G -
Remodeling p38 signaling in muscle controls locomotor activity via IL-15.
Science advances 2024 Folgueira C, Herrera-Melle L, López JA, Galvan-Alvarez V, Martin-Rincon M, Cuartero MI, García-Culebras A, Dumesic PA, Rodríguez E, Leiva-Vega L, León M, Porteiro B, Iglesias C, Torres JL, Hernández-… -
Development of a functional beige fat cell line uncovers independent subclasses of cells expressing UCP1 and the futile creatine cycle.
Cell metabolism 2024 Vargas-Castillo A, Sun Y, Smythers AL, Grauvogel L, Dumesic PA, Emont MP, Tsai LT, Rosen ED, Zammit NW, Shaffer SM, Ordonez M, Chouchani ET, Gygi SP, Wang T, Sharma AK, Balaz M, Wolfrum C, Spiegelman … -
REPTOR and CREBRF encode key regulators of muscle energy metabolism.
Nature communications 2023 Saavedra P, Dumesic PA, Hu Y, Filine E, Jouandin P, Binari R, Wilensky SE, Rodiger J, Wang H, Chen W, Liu Y, Spiegelman BM, Perrimon N -
Isolation of extracellular fluids reveals novel secreted bioactive proteins from muscle and fat tissues.
Cell metabolism 2023 Mittenbühler MJ, Jedrychowski MP, Van Vranken JG, Sprenger HG, Wilensky S, Dumesic PA, Sun Y, Tartaglia A, Bogoslavski D, A M, Xiao H, Blackmore KA, Reddy A, Gygi SP, Chouchani ET, Spiegelman BM -
RBM43 links adipose inflammation and energy expenditure through translational regulation of PGC1α.
bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology 2023 Dumesic PA, Wilensky SE, Bose S, Van Vranken JG, Gygi SP, Spiegelman BM -
SnapShot: Regulation and biology of PGC-1α.
Cell 2022 Jannig PR, Dumesic PA, Spiegelman BM, Ruas JL -
Mitochondrial TNAP controls thermogenesis by hydrolysis of phosphocreatine.
Nature 2021 Sun Y, Rahbani JF, Jedrychowski MP, Riley CL, Vidoni S, Bogoslavski D, Hu B, Dumesic PA, Zeng X, Wang AB, Knudsen NH, Kim CR, Marasciullo A, Millán JL, Chouchani ET, Kazak L, Spiegelman BM -
Dynamic changes in chromatin accessibility, altered adipogenic gene expression, and total versus de novo fatty acid synthesis in subcutaneous adipose stem cells of normal-weight polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) women during adipogenesis: evidence of cellular programming.
Clinical epigenetics 2020 Leung KL, Sanchita S, Pham CT, Davis BA, Okhovat M, Ding X, Dumesic P, Grogan TR, Williams KJ, Morselli M, Ma F, Carbone L, Li X, Pellegrini M, Dumesic DA, Chazenbalk GD -
Evolutionary Persistence of DNA Methylation for Millions of Years after Ancient Loss of a De Novo Methyltransferase.
Cell 2020 Catania S, Dumesic PA, Pimentel H, Nasif A, Stoddard CI, Burke JE, Diedrich JK, Cooke S, Shea T, Gienger E, Lintner R, Yates JR, Hajkova P, Narlikar GJ, Cuomo CA, Pritchard JK, Madhani HD -
Evolutionary Persistence of DNA Methylation for Millions of Years after Ancient Loss of a De Novo Methyltransferase.
Cell 2020 Catania S, Dumesic PA, Pimentel H, Nasif A, Stoddard CI, Burke JE, Diedrich JK, Cook S, Shea T, Geinger E, Lintner R, Yates JR, Hajkova P, Narlikar GJ, Cuomo CA, Pritchard JK, Madhani HD -
An Evolutionarily Conserved uORF Regulates PGC1α and Oxidative Metabolism in Mice, Flies, and Bluefin Tuna.
Cell metabolism 2019 Dumesic PA, Egan DF, Gut P, Tran MT, Parisi A, Chatterjee N, Jedrychowski M, Paschini M, Kazak L, Wilensky SE, Dou F, Bogoslavski D, Cartier JA, Perrimon N, Kajimura S, Parikh SM, Spiegelman BM -
Integrated Activity and Genetic Profiling of Secreted Peptidases in Cryptococcus neoformans Reveals an Aspartyl Peptidase Required for Low pH Survival and Virulence.
PLoS pathogens 2016 Clarke SC, Dumesic PA, Homer CM, O'Donoghue AJ, La Greca F, Pallova L, Majer P, Madhani HD, Craik CS -
Noncanoncial signal recognition particle RNAs in a major eukaryotic phylum revealed by purification of SRP from the human pathogen Cryptococcus neoformans.
Nucleic acids research 2015 Dumesic PA, Rosenblad MA, Samuelsson T, Nguyen T, Moresco JJ, Yates JR, Madhani HD -
Recognizing the enemy within: licensing RNA-guided genome defense.
Trends in biochemical sciences 2013 Dumesic PA, Madhani HD -
The spliceosome as a transposon sensor.
RNA biology 2013 Dumesic PA, Madhani HD -
Ers1 links HP1 to RNAi.
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America 2012 Rougemaille M, Braun S, Coyle S, Dumesic PA, Garcia JF, Isaac RS, Libri D, Narlikar GJ, Madhani HD -
Combinatorial, site-specific requirement for heterochromatic silencing factors in the elimination of nucleosome-free regions.
Genes & development 2010 Garcia JF, Dumesic PA, Hartley PD, El-Samad H, Madhani HD -
Erk1/2 MAP kinases are required for epidermal G2/M progression.
The Journal of cell biology 2009 Dumesic PA, Scholl FA, Barragan DI, Khavari PA -
Selective role for Mek1 but not Mek2 in the induction of epidermal neoplasia.
Cancer research 2009 Scholl FA, Dumesic PA, Barragan DI, Harada K, Charron J, Khavari PA -
Mek1/2 gene dosage determines tissue response to oncogenic Ras signaling in the skin.
Oncogene 2009 Scholl FA, Dumesic PA, Barragan DI, Charron J, Khavari PA -
Mek1/2 MAPK kinases are essential for Mammalian development, homeostasis, and Raf-induced hyperplasia.
Developmental cell 2007 Scholl FA, Dumesic PA, Barragan DI, Harada K, Bissonauth V, Charron J, Khavari PA -
Effects of active MEK1 expression in vivo.
Cancer letters 2005 Scholl FA, Dumesic PA, Khavari PA -
Mek1 alters epidermal growth and differentiation.
Cancer research 2004 Scholl FA, Dumesic PA, Khavari PA -
Equivalent blastocyst rates after freezing murine embryos in Cryo Bio System high security or standard instruments-medicine-veterinarian straws.
Fertility and sterility 2003 Walker DL, Hammitt DG, Dumesic PA, Thornhill AR