Dissertations and Theses (Open Access)

Author ORCID Identifier

0000-0002-2382-9175

Date of Graduation

8-2026

Document Type

Dissertation (PhD)

Program Affiliation

Cancer Biology

Degree Name

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

Advisor/Committee Chair

Andrea Viale

Committee Member

Giulio Draetta

Committee Member

Haoqiang Ying

Committee Member

Stephanie Watowich

Committee Member

Yejing Ge

Abstract

In response to injury or damage, pancreatic acinar cells transdifferentiate into ductal cells through a process known as acinar to ductal metaplasia (ADM). This process is usually transient and completely reversible. During the organ’s response to impermanent damage, various sub-populations of epithelial cells get activated and play distinct roles in the recovery process. There is an apparent re-establishment of normal histology upon damage repair. Specific cells in the tissue undergo some pervasive genomic changes during inflammation that make the organ more susceptible to transformation during that transient window. Although the link between inflammation and cancer has been long established, it is still correlative in the context of pancreatic cancer. This study has investigated ADM in the pancreas from the perspective of tissue repair and its genomic landscape and challenged some preconceived notions about pancreatic regeneration along with identifying novel transient vulnerabilities that can potentially lead to oncogenic transformation.

Keywords

pancreas, regeneration, differentiation, post-mitotic cells, aneuploidy, polyploidy, fusion, amitosis, reductive division, endoreplication

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Available for download on Tuesday, August 03, 2027

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