Dr. Chapkin, Allen Endowed Chair in Nutrition & Chronic Disease Prevention, Distinguished Professor, Regents Professor & University Faculty Fellow. He is an NCI R35 Outstanding Investigator.
He is an expert in dietary/microbial modulators related to prevention of colon cancer and chronic inflammatory diseases. Dr. Chapkin has made highly significant contributions in signal transduction processes in intestinal stem cells and membrane biology and nutritional modulation of organ membrane structure and function. He continues to contribute to significant research and is mentoring the next generation of scientists as they are beginning their career.
EDUCATION
- BSc., Nutrition and Biochemistry, June 1981
- University of Guelph, Ontario, Canada
- MSc., Nutrition, February 1983
- University of Guelph, Ontario, Canada
- Ph.D., Nutrition and Physiological Chemistry, December 1986
- University of California, Davis, California
LEADERSHIP
- Deputy Director – CPRIT Regional Center for Excellence in Cancer Research, 2023
- Allen Endowed Chair in Nutrition & Chronic Disease Prevention, 2017 – Present
- President – Sigma Xi Texas A&M University Chapter, 2015 – 2016
- Chair, American Institute for Cancer Research (AICR) Study Section Panel, 2014 – 2019
- Deputy Director, NIEHS Center for Translational Environmental Health Research, 2013 – 2016
- Chair, Intercollegiate Faculty of Nutrition, Texas A&M University, 2002 – 2005
MENTORSHIP
Graduated 10 M.S., 4 M.S./R.D. and 23 Ph.D. students and trained 30 Post-Doctoral fellows. I also recently received a Distinguished Achievement Award in Graduate Mentoring from Texas A&M University (2017). This demonstrates my dedication to mentorship and the training of the next generation of scientists in Nutrition Life Sciences and Cancer Biology.
HONORS AND AWARDS
From the NIH “First Award” in 1988 to launch my university career to my appointment as Distinguished Professor in 2014, the top honor at Texas A&M University, I have received numerous awards to acknowledge my research accomplishments and status in my field, e.g., NIH R35 Outstanding Investigator (2016-2023) and the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) Fellow (2018).
PROGRAM DESCRIPTION
I am an expert in dietary chemoprevention of colon cancer and inflammatory bowel diseases and have been continuously funded by NIH/NCI for the past 33 years. Highly significant contributions to cancer chemoprevention in five specific areas have been made during my career: (i) establishment of models for cancer prevention studies, (ii) elucidation of colon cancer epigenetics and signal transduction processes in the GI tract, (iii) investigation of the role of adaptive/innate immune response and chronic inflammation as a critical factor in colon cancer development, and its modulation by diet, (iv) membrane biology and nutritional modulation of epithelial and immune cell membrane structure and function, and (v) development of novel noninvasive Systems Biology-based methodologies to monitor diet/gene expression profiles and its application to translational research. These activities, together with a history of basic and translational (biomarkers) research using cutting-edge technologies, demonstrate my scientific credentials which make me a leader in the chronic disease prevention field.
In terms of administrative experience, I have served as Chair of the Intercollegiate Faculty of Nutrition, Deputy Director of the Center for Translational Environmental Health Research (NIH P30ES023512), as well as Director of an NIEHS Pilot Project Grants Program and Director of the Genomics & Bioinformatics Core at Texas A&M. I have utilized my extensive team building skills to reach across silos at the university to build a synergistically motivated NIEHS P30 Center for Translational Environmental Health Research. The Center incorporated programs in Nutrition & Toxicology, the Colleges of Engineering, Science, Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, and the Health Science Center (TAMHSC), home to the School of Medicine, School of Public Health, School of Pharmacy, Nursing, Dentistry, the Institute for Biosciences and Technology, as well as faculty from Baylor College of Medicine and the University of Houston. My strong leadership and team building skills have resulted in formulation of several training grants designed to train the next generation of researchers in the areas of: (i) Nutrition, (ii) Exercise Physiology, (iii) Metabolism, (iv) Preclinical Disease Models, (v) Biostatistics & Computational Biology, and (vi) Education & Outreach. Mentors in these programs are housed in 8 components of Texas A&M University and are currently also supported in part by an NCI-funded T32 training program (T32 CA090301) in Biostatistics, Bioinformatics, Nutrition and Cancer at Texas A&M and an NIEHS-funded T32 graduate training program (T32 ES026568) in Regulatory Science.
EMPLOYMENT
- 1986-1988:
- Postdoctoral fellow, Immunology-Tumor Biology Laboratory, Department of Cell Biology and Human Anatomy, School of Medicine, University of California, Davis.
- 1988-1993:
- Assistant Professor, Human Nutrition and Molecular & Cell Biology Sections, Department of Animal Science, Texas A&M University.
- 1994-1999:
- Associate Professor, Human Nutrition and Molecular & Cell Biology Sections, Department of Animal Science, Texas A&M University.
- 2000-2013:
- Professor, Department of Nutrition, Texas A&M University
- 2014 – present:
- Distinguished Professor, Department of Nutrition, Texas A&M University
PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE
- Present:
- University Distinguished Professor, Allen Endowed Chair in Nutrition & Chronic Disease Prevention and NCI (R35) Outstanding Investigator, Regents Professor and University Faculty Fellow, Program in Integrative Nutrition & Complex Diseases, Departments of Nutrition, Biochemistry & Biophysics, Veterinary Integrative Biosciences, Texas A&M University and the Department of Microbial Pathogenesis & Immunology, Texas A&M Health Science Center
- Present:
- Deputy Director – CPRIT Regional Center for Excellence in Cancer Research
- 2022-Present:
- Scientific Review Panel, NCI PREVENT Cancer Preclinical Drug Development Program.
- 2017-2022:
- Co-Director, NCI T32 Biostatistics, Bioinformatics, Nutrition and Cancer Training Program
- 2016:
- Editorial Board: Current Pharmacology Reports
- 2013-2016:
- Deputy Director, NIEHS P30 Center for Translational Environmental Human Research.
- 2016-2023:
- National Cancer Institute (NCI) R35 Outstanding Investigator
- 2015-Present:
- Editorial Board: Frontiers in Immunology and Nutrition
- 2015-2016:
- President – Sigma Xi Texas A&M University Chapter
- 2014-Present:
- Distinguished Professor, Texas A&M University System Chair, American Institute for Cancer Research (AICR) Study Section Panel
- 2011-Present:
- Deputy Director, NIEHS Center for Translational Environmental Human Research (CTEHR) at Texas A&M/Baylor College of Medicine
- 2011:
- Distinguished Achievement Award – Research, Texas A&M University
- 2010-Present:
- Regents Professor, Texas A&M University System
- 2002-2005:
- Chair, Faculty of Nutrition, Texas A&M University
- 2002-2005:
- Standing Member of the Metabolic Pathology and the Chemo-Dietary Prevention (CDP) Study Sections, National Cancer Institute, NIH
- 2001-2007:
- Faculty Fellow – Texas A&M University
- 1999-2000:
- Chair, Diet-Cancer Research Interest Section, American Society for Nutritional Sciences (ASN).
- 1999-2007:
- Chair of the Pilot Project Program and Member of the Center for Environmental and Rural Health, NIEHS/Texas A&M University
- 1992:
- Pew National Nutrition Program Scholar. Sabbatical in the laboratory of Dr. Jorge Moscat, Department of Molecular Biology, Hospital Gregorio Maranon, Madrid, Spain.
- 1991-Present:
- Associate Member of the Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, Texas A&M University.
PROFESSIONAL SOCIETY MEMBERSHIPS
- American Association for the Advancement of Science 1989-Present
- American Society for Nutritional Sciences, 1989-Present
- Sigma Xi, 1991-Present
- American Association for Cancer Research, 1993-Present
- American Society for Cell Biology, 2004-Present
- American Association of Immunologists, 2006-Present
- American Physiological Society, 2012-Present
- International Society for Stem Cell Research, 2013-Present
- Biophysical Society, 2020-Present
EDITORIAL BOARDS
- American Society for Nutrition (ASN) Mary Swartz Rose Senior Investigator Award, 2023
- Research Scientist of the Year Award, Texas A&M AgriLife, 2020
- American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) Fellow (Biological Sciences), 2018
- Allen Endowed Chair in Nutrition & Chronic Disease Prevention, Texas A&M University, 2017-Present
- National Cancer Institute (NCI) R35 Outstanding Investigator Award, 2016-2023
- Texas A&M University Association of Former Students Distinguished Achievement Award in Graduate Mentoring, 2017
- Texas A&M AgriLife Vice Chancellor’s Award in Excellence, January 16, 2016
- Texas A&M University System Distinguished Professor, 2014-Present
- American Society for Nutrition (ASN) Osborne and Mendel Award, 2013
- Texas A&M University Association of Former Students Distinguished Achievement Award in Research, 2011
- Texas A&M University System Regents Professor, 2010-Present
- Vegetable & Fruit Improvement Center, Texas AgriLife Research Director’s Award, 2009
- NASA Space Act Award, 2008
- Senior Faculty Fellow Award, Texas A&M University, 2007
- Sigma Xi Distinguished Scientist Award, Texas A&M University Chapter, 2006
- Texas A&M University Faculty Fellow Award, 2001-Present
- Texas Agricultural Experimentation Station (TAES) Faculty Fellow Award, 2000
- American Society for Nutrition (ASN) Bio Serv Award in Experimental Animal Nutrition, 1996
- American Oil Chemists’ Society, Outstanding Paper Presentation, May 1995
- PEW National Nutrition Program Faculty Scholar Award, 1991-1992 National Institutes of Health “First Award”, 1989-1994
PATENTS
- United States Patent, “Noninvasive detection of colonic biomarkers using fecal messenger RNA.” July 10, 2001 (6,258,541). R.S. Chapkin, L.A. Davidson and J.R. Lupton.
- United States Provisional Patent, “Gene expression profiles from colonocyte mRNA isolated from feces.” August 29, 2005 (TAMU 1014). R.S. Chapkin, L.A. Davidson, N. Wang and J.R. Lupton.
- United States Provisional Patent, “Non-invasive diagnosis of gastrointestinal diseases”. Application No. 62/578,760, filed October 30, 2017. R.S Chapkin, C. Whitfield-Cargile, L.A. Davidson, K. He, L.A. Davidson and N. Cohen.
COURSES TAUGHT
NUTR 203 Scientific Principles of Human Nutrition (3-0) Credit 3. Introductory nutrition class for undergraduate majors. Basic chemistry and function of proteins, carbohydrates, fats, vitamins and minerals. Students learn how nutrients are digested, absorbed and metabolized. Emphasis is placed on the integration of metabolic processes.