Ralph DeBerardinis

Ralph DeBerardinis is a Professor at UT Southwestern Medical Center and Director of the Genetic and Metabolic Disease Program at the Children’s Medical Center Research Institute (CRI). He specializes in studying metabolic pathways in diseases like cancer and inborn errors of metabolism. His work integrates clinical activities in medical genetics, oncology, and radiology to bridge research findings with patient care.

Education: B.S. in Biology (St. Joseph’s University), M.D. and Ph.D. (University of Pennsylvania). Postdoctoral training under Craig Thompson at the Penn Cancer Center. Joined UT Southwestern faculty in 2008.

Research Interests: Focuses on how metabolic alterations drive cancer progression and pediatric genetic disorders. Key areas include tumor metabolism, metabolic heterogeneity in lung cancer, and the role of mitochondria in cancer metastasis. His lab’s recent work revealed that high glucose contribution to the TCA cycle predicts cancer spread in non-small cell lung cancer patients.

Awards:

• National Cancer Institute Outstanding Investigator (2017, 2023)
• Howard Hughes Medical Institute Investigator (2018)
• Edith and Peter O’Donnell Award in Medicine (2019)
• Paul Marks Prize for Cancer Research (2021)
• Elected to the National Academy of Medicine (2020)

Grants & Labs: Leads the DeBerardinis Lab at CRI and directs the Eugene McDermott Center for Human Growth and Development. His research is funded by the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, NCI, and the Moody Foundation.