Projects and Grants per year
Personal profile
Research Interests
Dr. Evers’s basic research, continuously funded by the NIH for the past 21 years focuses on signaling pathways regulating colorectal cancer proliferation and metastasis and mechanisms contributing to intestinal cell differentiation and aging.
His laboratory has identified key components of the PI3K/Akt/mTOR pathway which play differential roles in colorectal carcinogenesis and differentiation. Activation of phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3K), a ubiquitous lipid kinase composed of an 85 kDa regulatory subunit (p85) and a 110 kDa catalytic subunit (p110) and its downstream effector protein, Akt, is associated with the growth and progression of a number of cancers, including colorectal cancer. Dr. Evers’s group hypothesizes that colorectal cancer growth and progression are augmented by increased p85α and Akt2 expression and that selective inhibition of PI3K/Akt components can suppress colorectal cancer growth and metastasis and can sensitize resistant colorectal cancers to chemotherapeutic agents.
Dr. Evers is the PI of an NIH MERIT award (R37 AG010885) which is focused on a better understanding of the function of the gut peptide neurotensin (NT) an important regulatory and trophic hormone localized to specialized enteroendocrine cells (N cells) of the adult small bowel.
Using the novel endocrine cell line model, BON, investigators in Dr. Evers’s laboratory have identified the signaling pathways responsible for NT secretion. Current studies are also focused on the effects of NT associated with aging and on the proliferation of various cancers. Dr. Evers is the PI of an R01 from NIDDK (R01 DK048498) which has led to the discovery of new pathways contributing to intestinal cell differentiation.
Current studies are analyzing unique interactions of mTOR on other signaling proteins such as the sirtuin family of proteins. Finally, Dr. Evers is the PI for the UK GI Cancer SPORE planning grant (P20) which represents a multidisciplinary effort to identify better treatment, diagnostic and preventive strategies for GI cancers, a significant problem in Kentucky. One project which is being performed in collaboration with Dr. Tianyan Gao is focused on colorectal cancer cell metabolism and effects of mTOR signaling.
Expertise related to UN Sustainable Development Goals
In 2015, UN member states agreed to 17 global Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to end poverty, protect the planet and ensure prosperity for all. This person’s work contributes towards the following SDG(s):
Education/Academic qualification
Post Doctoral Fellow, University Of Texas Medical
1990
Residency, University Of Louisville
1988
Doctor of Medicine, University Of Tennessee-Medical
1983
Bachelor of Arts, University Of Tennessee-Knoxville
1979
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Collaborations and top research areas from the last five years
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Integrative Targeted Therapy for Melanoma
Yang, J. (PI), Evers, B. M. (CoI), Ren, X. (CoI) & Yan, D. (CoI)
4/1/24 → 3/31/29
Project: Research project
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Fatty Acid Synthase as a Novel Molecular Target for Colon Cancer Treatment
Gao, T. (PI), Lee, E. (CoI), Messaoudi Powers, I. (CoI), St Clair, D. (CoI), Wang, C. (CoI), Zaytseva, Y. (CoI) & Evers, B. M. (CoPI)
3/1/24 → 2/28/29
Project: Research project
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Impact Of Dysbiotic And Symbiotic Catabolism Of Luminal Amino Acids On Intestinal Epithelial Barrier Function And Inflammation
Alam, M. (PI), Barrett, T. (CoI), Evers, B. M. (CoI), Fields, K. (CoI), Gao, T. (CoI), Goretsky, T. (CoI) & Thorson, J. (CoI)
National Institute Diabetes & Digestive & Kidney
9/20/23 → 8/31/25
Project: Research project
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SEER - Linked Virtual Tissue Repository (VTR) Program
Kuhs, K. (PI), Evers, B. M. (Former PI) & Tucker, T. (Former PI)
9/15/23 → 9/14/25
Project: Research project
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Targeting the Immunosuppressive Tumor Microenvironment for Colorectal Cancer Treatment
Wang, Q. (PI), Bondada, S. (CoI), Higashi, R. (CoI), Lee, E. (CoI), Wang, C. (CoI), Weiss, H. (CoI) & Evers, B. M. (CoPI)
9/1/23 → 8/31/28
Project: Research project
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Examining Geographic Disparity: Variation in Cancer Outcomes Within Appalachia
Burus, T., Hull, P. C., Lang Kuhs, K. A., Gao, T., Brainson, C. F. & Evers, B. M., Apr 1 2025, In: Journal of the American College of Surgeons. 240, 4, p. 425-436 12 p.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
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GDP-mannose 4,6-dehydratase is a key driver of MYCN-amplified neuroblastoma core fucosylation and tumorigenesis
Zhu, B., Pitts, M. G., Buoncristiani, M. D., Bryant, L. T., Lopez-Nunez, O., Gurria, J. P., Shedlock, C., Ribas, R., Keohane, S., Liu, J., Wang, C., Gentry, M. S., Shelman, N. R., Allison, D. B., Evers, B. M., Sun, R. C. & Rellinger, E. J., May 23 2025, In: Oncogene. 44, 18, p. 1272-1283 12 p., 100304.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
Open Access -
Glycogen drives tumour initiation and progression in lung adenocarcinoma
Clarke, H. A., Hawkinson, T. R., Shedlock, C. J., Medina, T., Ribas, R. A., Wu, L., Liu, Z., Ma, X., Xia, Y., Huang, Y., He, X., Chang, J. E., Young, L. E. A., Juras, J. A., Buoncristiani, M. D., James, A. N., Rushin, A., Merritt, M. E., Mestas, A. & Lamb, J. F. & 11 others, , 2025, (Accepted/In press) In: Nature Metabolism. e44235.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
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miR-27a-3p regulates intestinal cell proliferation and differentiation through Wnt/β-catenin signalling
Li, C., Zhou, Y., Jiang, Y., Yin, Z., Weiss, H. L., Wang, Q. & Evers, B. M., Feb 2025, In: Cell Proliferation. 58, 2, e13757.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
Open Access2 Scopus citations -
Survival Disparity and the Unique Genomic and Microbiome Profiles of Colon Cancer in Appalachian Kentucky
McDonald, H. G., Reagan, A. M., Faisal, A. S. M., Goettl, R., Wang, C., Hoyd, R., Spakowicz, D., Evers, B. M., Kim, J. & Bhakta, A. S., Apr 1 2025, In: Journal of the American College of Surgeons. 240, 4, p. 612-624 13 p.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review