Jayanta Debnath

Dr. Jayanta Debnath is a Professor at the University of California San Francisco (UCSF) School of Medicine, Department of Pathology. His research focuses on autophagy, epithelial cell fate, and oncogenic transformation in cancer progression. He has led groundbreaking studies in autophagy's role in tumor microenvironment regulation and therapeutic targeting.

• Bachelor of Science in Chemistry, Georgia Institute of Technology
• Doctor of Medicine, Harvard Medical School
• NIH-HHMI Scholar, National Cancer Institute

Dr. Debnath's research explores autophagy's multifaceted roles in cancer, including adhesion-independent survival, metastasis, and secretory mechanisms via extracellular vesicles. His lab investigates autophagy-related genes (ATGs) and their physiological functions to develop therapeutic strategies.

His recent publications highlight autophagy's involvement in lysosomal stress response, unconventional secretion, tumor desmoplasia, and mitochondrial recycling. Key trends include autophagy as a microenvironmental regulator and its interplay with oncogenic signaling pathways.

• Charles Culpeper Scholarship
• AACR Genentech Career Development Award
• HHMI Early Career Award
• DOD Era of Hope Scholar
• ASIP Outstanding Investigator Award

Dr. Debnath's lab has secured continuous NIH funding since 2003, including R01 grants for autophagy in cancer progression, metastasis, and neurodegenerative disease connections. Current projects include proximity-based biotinylation studies and exosome biogenesis.