
Huocong Huang, M.D., Ph.D.
Assistant Professor
Department Surgery
Graduate Programs Cancer Biology
Biography
Dr. Huocong Huang received his medical degree from Sun Yat-sen University and his Ph.D. in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology from University of Nebraska Medical Center. His graduate research was mentored by Dr. Keith R. Johnson, focusing on the signaling transduction and protein interaction of collagen-induced cell plasticity. He then joined Dr. Rolf Brekken’s laboratory at UT Southwestern Medical Center for postdoctoral training. His postdoctoral research studied the function of cancer-associated fibroblasts and extracellular matrix in pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma. He also examined the therapeutic potential of these stromal targets using animal models. Dr. Huang’s current research is focused on understanding the heterogeneity, origin and function of fibroblasts in physiological or pathological conditions including cancer, fibrosis, wound healing and aging.
Education
- Graduate School
- Uni of Nebraska-Med Ctr (2016), Philosophy
Research Interest
- Cancer-associated Fibroblast
- Cell Biology
- Fibrosis
- Mesothelial Cell
- Signal Transduction
- Tumor Microenvironment
Publications
Featured Publications
- Mesothelial cell-derived antigen-presenting cancer-associated fibroblasts induce expansion of regulatory T cells in pancreatic cancer.
- Huang H, Wang Z, Zhang Y, Pradhan RN, Ganguly D, Chandra R, Murimwa G, Wright S, Gu X, Maddipati R, Müller S, Turley SJ, Brekken RA, Cancer Cell 2022 Apr
- Targeting TGF?R2-mutant tumors exposes vulnerabilities to stromal TGF? blockade in pancreatic cancer.
- Huang H, Zhang Y, Gallegos V, Sorrelle N, Zaid MM, Toombs J, Du W, Wright S, Hagopian M, Wang Z, Hosein AN, Sathe AA, Xing C, Koay EJ, Driscoll KE, Brekken RA, EMBO Mol Med 2019 Oct e10515
- Cellular heterogeneity during mouse pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma progression at single-cell resolution.
- Hosein AN, Huang H, Wang Z, Parmar K, Du W, Huang J, Maitra A, Olson E, Verma U, Brekken RA, JCI Insight 2019 Jul 5
- Targeting TNF-a producing macrophages activate antitumor immunity in pancreatic cancer through IL33 signaling.
- Dixit A, Sarver AL, Zettervall J, Huang H, Zheng K, Brekken RA, Provenzano P, JCI Insight 2022 Oct
- Cell Competition Shapes Metastatic Latency and Relapse.
- Kim K, Huang H, Parida PK, He L, Marquez-Palencia M, Reese TC, Kapur P, Brugarolas J, Brekken RA, Malladi S, Cancer Discov 2022 Sep
- VEGFR2 activity on myeloid cells mediates immune suppression in the tumor microenvironment.
- Zhang Y, Huang H, Coleman M, Ziemys A, Gopal P, Kazmi SM, Brekken RA, JCI Insight 2021 Oct
- AXL inhibitor TP-0903 reduces metastasis and therapy resistance in pancreatic cancer.
- Zhang Y, Arner EN, Rizvi A, Toombs JE, Huang H, Warner SL, Foulks JM, Brekken RA, Mol Cancer Ther 2021 Oct
- Location matters: Profiling diffuse type gastric cancer at the single cell level.
- Huang H, Brekken RA, Clin Cancer Res 2021 Sep
- Ddr1-induced neutrophil extracellular traps drive pancreatic cancer metastasis.
- Deng J, Kang Y, Cheng CC, Li X, Dai B, Katz MH, Men T, Kim MP, Koay E, Huang H, Brekken RA, Fleming JB, JCI Insight 2021 Jul
- AXL Is a Key Factor for Cell Plasticity and Promotes Metastasis in Pancreatic Cancer.
- Du W, Phinney NZ, Huang H, Wang Z, Westcott J, Toombs JE, Zhang Y, Beg MS, Wilkie TM, Lorens JB, Brekken RA, Mol Cancer Res 2021 Apr
Books
Featured Books
Collagen Signaling in Cancer. In Protein Kinase Inhibitors as Sensitizing Agents for Chemotherapy
Huang H, Kovacs ME, Aguilera KY, Brekken RA (2018). Cambridge, Massachusetts, Academic Press
Honors & Awards
- Center for Organogenesis Research and Trauma (CORT) Award, UTSW
(2021) - K99/R00 Award, NIH/NCI
(2021) - Best Presentation Award, Cancer Biology Program Retreat, UTSW
(2019) - Best Poster Award, 8th International Meeting on Epithelial-Mesenchymal Transition
(2017)
Professional Associations/Affiliations
- International Society for Stem Cell Research (2021)
- American Association for Cancer Research (2018)
- American Society for Cell Biology (2014)