Michael Karin

Michael Karin is a Distinguished Professor of Pharmacology at the University of California San Diego (UCSD) School of Medicine. He holds a B.Sc. in Biology from Tel Aviv University (1975) and a Ph.D. in Molecular Biology from UCLA (1979). His research focuses on understanding the interplay between inflammation, cancer, metabolic diseases, and signaling pathways in innate immunity. He has made seminal contributions to uncovering stress-response pathways, including the IKK/NF-κB axis, and their roles in tumorigenesis and metabolic disorders.

Dr. Karin’s work spans cellular mechanisms linking obesity to liver cancer (HCC) and non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH). Notable achievements include discovering critical signaling pathways in inflammation-driven carcinogenesis and identifying therapeutic targets for metabolic diseases. He has been a principal investigator on numerous NIH grants, including studies on immune-inflammatory responses to SARS-CoV-2, liver cancer immunology, and metabolic dysfunction.

His awards include the Harvey Prize (2011), Brupbacher Prize (2013), and membership in the National Academy of Sciences (2005). He co-founded Signal Pharmaceutical (now part of Celgene) and has served on National Institutes of Health advisory boards. Current research emphasizes NASH-driven HCC, senescence reversal, and the role of innate immunity in metabolic health.