Eric Allan Hanse

Project Scientist, University of California Irvine

Biography

Eric Allan Hanse, Ph.D., is a Project Scientist in the laboratory of Mei Kong at the University of California, Irvine. He received his Ph.D. in Cancer Biology from the University of Minnesota in 2017, where his dissertation on metabolic adaptations in proliferating cells and cancer received an Honorable Mention for the Best Dissertation Award. His research focuses on the cross talk between metabolism and signaling pathways in cancer, with particular emphasis on how metabolic intermediates such as alpha-ketoglutarate and NAD regeneration influence tumor biology and cellular differentiation.

Hanse has secured multiple competitive research fellowships, including an American Cancer Society Postdoctoral Fellowship and two NIH training grants (F31 and T32). His work has been published in journals such as Nature Communications, Cell Reports, Oncogene, and Science Advances, with contributions spanning cancer metabolism, epigenetic regulation, and metabolic stress responses. He has also contributed to research published in Cell and Nature, examining metabolic pathways in immune cells and cancer adaptation mechanisms. In 2021, he received the Barbara Burgess Outstanding Early Investigator award from the UCI College of Biological Sciences.

Hanse serves as a Review Editor for Frontiers in Oncology and Molecular Medicine, with expertise in cancer metabolism and appendiceal cancer. He has mentored numerous undergraduate and high school students, several of whom have advanced to graduate programs at institutions including Stanford, Harvard, and Washington University. Multiple high school students under his mentorship have been recognized as Intel competition finalists and semi-finalists.

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Education

Ph.D. in Cancer Biology, University of Minnesota, 2017
B.S. in Cell Biology, University of Minnesota Duluth, 2008

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Distinctions

American Cancer Society Postdoctoral Fellowship, 2019-2022
Barbara Burgess Outstanding Early Investigator, UCI College of BioSci Dean's Award, 2021
University of Minnesota Best Dissertation Award (Honorable Mention), 2018
University of Minnesota Cancer Research Day Poster Competition Winner (Fellow Division), 2008

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Areas of Expertise

Cancer Metabolism
Glutamine Utilization Pathways
Bcl-2 Family Protein Regulation
NAD Regeneration Mechanisms
Alpha-Ketoglutarate Tumor Suppression
Protein Phosphatase 6 Signaling
Metabolic Epigenetic Modifications

Recent Publications

Campos M., Nguyen S.T., Kong X., Yang Y., Watson R.L., Gromova A., Livelo C.R., Franco C.N., Cabral J.E., Seabrook L.J., Dai S., Liu Y., Zhou M., Hanse E.A., Sumigray K., La Spada A.R., Seldin M.M., Plikus M.V., Nicholas D.A., McNulty R., et al., “PFKM governs metabolic shifts throughout skeletal muscle differentiation” (opens in new tab), Nature Metabolism, vol. 8, pp. 489-505, 2026.
Yang Y, Kang DE, Fan Q, Hanse EA, Bae H, Barahona RA, Shen X, Ruiz BI, Lee SH, Pasterczyk KR, Babbar N, Waldvogel KG, Tinoco R, Green KN, Yang Q, Jang C, Kong M, “The protein phosphatase 6 subunit SAPS3 modulates lifespan by regulating metabolism” (opens in new tab), Science Advances, vol. 11, no. 43, pp. 1-14, 2025.
Naciri I, Liang M, Yang Y, Karner H, Lin B, De Lourdes Andrade Ludena M, Hanse EA, Lebron A, Razorenova OV, Nicholas D, Kong M, Sun S, “Loss of XIST lncRNA unlocks stemness and cellular plasticity in ovarian cancer” (opens in new tab), Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, vol. 121, no. 47, 2024.
Ruiz BI, Lowman XH, Yang Y, Fan Q, Wang T, Wu H, Hanse EA, Kong M, “Alpha-Ketoglutarate Regulates Tnfrsf12a/Fn14 Expression via Histone Modification and Prevents Cancer-Induced Cachexia” (opens in new tab), Genes, vol. 14, no. 9, 2023.
Hanse EA, Wang T, Tifrea D, Senthil M, Kim AC, Kong M, Eng OS, “A Novel Assessment of Metabolic Pathways in Peritoneal Metastases from Low-Grade Appendiceal Mucinous Neoplasms” (opens in new tab), Annals of Surgical Oncology, vol. 30, pp. 5132-5141, 2023.
Yang Y, Reid MA, Hanse EA, Li H, Li Y, Ruiz B, Fan Q, Kong M, “SAPS3 subunit of protein phosphatase 6 is an AMPK inhibitor and controls metabolic homeostasis upon dietary challenge in male mice” (opens in new tab), Nature Communications, vol. 14, no. 1368, 2023.
Hanse EA, Kong M, “A happy cell stays home: When metabolic stress creates epigenetic advantages in the tumor microenvironment” (opens in new tab), Frontiers in Oncology, vol. 12, no. 1, 2022.
Hanse EA, Pan M, Liu W, Yang Y, Gabra MBI, Tran TQ, Lowman XH, Ruiz B, Wang QA, Kong M, “The B56α subunit of PP2A is necessary for mesenchymal stem cell commitment to adipocyte” (opens in new tab), EMBO Reports, vol. 22, 2021.
Hippen KL, O'Connor RS, Lemire AM, Saha A, Hanse EA, Tennis NC, Merkel SC, Kelekar A, Riley JL, Levine BL, June CH, Turka LA, Kean LS, MacMillan ML, Miller JS, Wagner JE, Munn DH, Blazar BR, “In Vitro Induction of Human Regulatory T Cells Using Conditions of Low Tryptophan Plus Kynurenines” (opens in new tab), American Journal of Transplantation, vol. 17, pp. 3098-3013, 2017.
Guo Z, Sevrioukova IF, Denisov IG, Zhang X, Chiu TL, Thomas DG, Hanse EA, Cuellar RAD, Grinkova YV, Langenfeld VW, Swedien DS, Stamschror JD, Alvarez J, Luna F, Galvan A, Bae YK, Wulfkuhle JD, Gallagher RI, Petricoin EFR, Norris B, et al., “Heme Binding Biguanides Target Cytochrome P450-Dependent Cancer Cell Mitochondria” (opens in new tab), Cell Chemical Biology, vol. 24, pp. 1259-1275.e6, 2017.
Guo Z., Sevrioukova I.F., Denisov I.G., Zhang X., Chiu T.-L., Thomas D.G., Hanse E.A., Cuellar R.A.D., Grinkova Y.V., Langenfeld V.W., Swedien D.S., Stamschror J.D., Alvarez J., Luna F., Galvan A., Bae Y.K., Wulfkuhle J.D., Gallagher R.I., Petricoin E.F., Norris B., et al., “Erratum: Heme Binding Biguanides Target Cytochrome P450-Dependent Cancer Cell Mitochondria (Cell Chemical Biology (2017) 24(10) (1259–1275.e6) (S2451945617302830)(10.1016/j.chembiol.2017.08.009))” (opens in new tab), Cell Chemical Biology, vol. 24, pp. 1314, 2017.
Yan Y, Hanse EA, Stedman K, Benson JM, Lowman XH, Subramanian S, Kelekar A, “Transcription factor C/EBP-β induces tumor-suppressor phosphatase PHLPP2 through repression of the miR-17-92 cluster in differentiating AML cells” (opens in new tab), Cell Death and Differentiation, vol. 23, pp. 1232-1242, 2016.
Kamarajugadda S, Becker J, Hanse EA, Mashek D, Mashek M, Hendrickson A, Mullany L, Albrecht J, “Cyclin D1 represses peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor alpha and inhibits fatty acid oxidation” (opens in new tab), Oncotarget, vol. 7, no. 30, pp. 47674-47686, 2016.
Karim CB, Espinoza-Fonseca LM, James ZM, Hanse EA, Gaynes JS, Thomas DD, Kelekar A, “Structural Mechanism for Regulation of Bcl-2 protein Noxa by phosphorylation” (opens in new tab), Scientific Reports, vol. 5, pp. 14557, 2015.
Xie C, Lu H, Nomura A, Hanse EA, Forster CL, Parker JB, Linden MA, Karasch C, Hallstrom TC, “Co-deleting Pten with Rb in retinal progenitor cells in mice results in fully penetrant bilateral retinoblastomas” (opens in new tab), Molecular Cancer, vol. 14, pp. 93, 2015.
Karim C.B., Michel Espinoza-Fonseca L., James Z.M., Hanse E.A., Gaynes J.S., Thomas D.D., Kelekar A., “Erratum: Structural Mechanism for Regulation of Bcl-2 protein Noxa by phosphorylation (Scientific Reports 5 (14557))” (opens in new tab), Scientific Reports, vol. 5, 2015.
Nakamura I, Fernandez-Barrena MG, Ortiz-Ruiz MC, Almada LL, Hu C, Elsawa SF, Mills LD, Romecin PA, Gulaid KH, Moser CD, Han JJ, Vrabel A, Hanse EA, Akogyeram NA, Albrecht JH, Monga SP, Sanderson SO, Prieto J, Roberts LR, Fernandez-Zapico ME, “Activation of the transcription factor GLI1 by WNT signaling underlies the role of SULFATASE 2 as a regulator of tissue regeneration” (opens in new tab), Journal of Biological Chemistry, vol. 288, no. 29, pp. 21389-98, 2013.
Hanse EA, Mashek D, Becker J, Solmonson A, Mullany L, Mashek M, Towle H, Chau A, Albrecht J, “Cyclin D1 inhibits hepatic lipogenesis via repression of carbohydrate response element binding protein and hepatocyte nuclear factor 4α” (opens in new tab), Cell Cycle, vol. 11, no. 14, pp. 2681-90, 2012.
Mullany L, Hanse EA, Romano A, Blomquist C, Mason JI, Delvoux B, Anttila C, Albrecht J, “Cyclin D1 regulates hepatic estrogen and androgen metabolism” (opens in new tab), American Journal of Physiology: Gastrointestinal and Liver Physiology, vol. 298, no. 6, pp. G884-95, 2010.

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Most Cited Publications

Borges da Silva H, Wang J, Beura L, Hanse EA, Gore R, Block KE, Yan Y, Fonseca R, Hippen K, Blazar BA, Masopust D, Kelekar A, Vulchanova L, Hogquist KA, Jameson SC, “The purinergic receptor P2RX7 directs metabolic fitness of long-lived memory CD8+ T cells” (opens in new tab), Nature, vol. 559, no. 7713, pp. 264-268, 2018.
Tran TQ, Hanse EA, Habowski AN, Li H, Gabra MBI, Yang Y, Lowman XH, Ooi AM, Liao SY, Edwards RA, Waterman ML, Kong M, “α-Ketoglutarate attenuates Wnt signaling and drives differentiation in colorectal cancer” (opens in new tab), Nature Cancer, vol. 1, no. 3, pp. 345-358, 2020.
Yang Y, Ishak Gabra MB, Hanse EA, Lowman XH, Tran TQ, Li H, Milman N, Liu J, Reid MA, Locasale JW, Gil Z, Kong M, “MiR-135 suppresses glycolysis and promotes pancreatic cancer cell adaptation to metabolic stress by targeting phosphofructokinase-1” (opens in new tab), Nature Communications, vol. 10, no. 1, pp. 809, 2019.
Olenchock BA, Moslehi J, Baik AH, Davidson SM, Williams J, Gibson WJ, Pierce KA, Miller CM, Hanse EA, Kelekar A, Sullivan LB, Wagers AJ, Clish CB, Vander Heiden MG, Kaelin WG Jr, “EGLN1 Inhibition and Rerouting of α-Ketoglutarate Suffice for Remote Ischemic Protection” (opens in new tab), Cell, vol. 164, no. 5, pp. 884-95, 2016.
Hanse EA, Ruan C, Kachman M, Wang D, Lowman XH, Kelekar A, “Cytosolic malate dehydrogenase activity helps support glycolysis in actively proliferating cells and cancer” (opens in new tab), Oncogene, vol. 36, no. 27, pp. 3915-24, 2017.
Lowman XH, Hanse EA, Yang Y, Ishak Gabra MB, Tran TQ, Li H, Kong M, “p53 Promotes Cancer Cell Adaptation to Glutamine Deprivation by Upregulating Slc7a3 to Increase Arginine Uptake” (opens in new tab), Cell Reports, vol. 26, no. 11, pp. 3051-3060, 2019.
Ishak Gabra MB, Yang Y, Li H, Senapati P, Hanse EA, Lowman XH, Tran TQ, Zhang L, Doan LT, Xu X, Schones DE, Fruman DA, Kong M, “Dietary glutamine supplementation suppresses epigenetically activated oncogenic pathways to inhibit melanoma tumour growth” (opens in new tab), Nature Communications, vol. 11, no. 1, pp. 3326, 2020.
Shu J, Kren B, Xia Z, Wong PY, Li L, Hanse EA, Min M, Li B, Albrecht J, Zeng Y, “Genomewide microRNA down-regulation as a negative feedback mechanism in the early phases of liver regeneration” (opens in new tab), Hepatology, vol. 54, no. 2, pp. 609-19, 2011.
Mullany L, White P, Hanse EA, Nelsen C, Goggin M, Mullany J, Anttila C, Greenbaum L, Kaestner K, Albrecht J, “Distinct proliferative and transcriptional effects of the D-type cyclins in vivo” (opens in new tab), Cell Cycle, vol. 7, no. 14, pp. 2215-24, 2008.
Brauch K, Dhruv N, Hanse EA, Andrews M, “Digital transcriptome analysis indicates adaptive mechanisms in the heart of a hibernating mammal” (opens in new tab), Physiological Genomics, vol. 23, no. 2, pp. 227-34, 2005.

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Contact Information

Email: ehanse@uci.edu

Phone: (949) 824-6533

Address: 3119 McGaugh Hall

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This profile was created with the help of AI.

Last updated on 4/27/2026.