Ronald Evans, PhD

Professor and Director

Gene Expression Laboratory

March of Dimes Chair in Molecular and Developmental Biology

Ronald Evans
Salk Institute for Biological Studies - News

News


Salk scientists discover new target for reversible, non-hormonal male birth control

LA JOLLA—Surveys show most men in the United States are interested in using male contraceptives, yet their options remain limited to unreliable condoms or invasive vasectomies. Recent attempts to develop …


Salk Institute Professor Ronald Evans honored with Japan Prize

LA JOLLA—Salk Professor Ronald Evans has been named the 2024 recipient of the Japan Prize in the field of Medical Science and Pharmaceutical Science. The Japan Prize Foundation awards this …


How drugs can target the thick “scar tissue” of pancreatic cancer

LA JOLLA—Pancreatic cancer is one of the deadliest cancers—only about one in eight patients survives five years after diagnosis. Those dismal statistics are in part due to the thick, nearly …


Seven Salk scientists named among best and most highly cited researchers in the world

LA JOLLA—Salk Professors Joseph Ecker, Ronald Evans, Satchidananda Panda, Rusty Gage, and Kay Tye, as well as Assistant Professor Jesse Dixon, have been named to the Highly Cited Researchers list …


“Super-enhancer” super-charges pancreatic tumor growth

LA JOLLA—Pancreatic cancers are among the most aggressive, deadly tumor types and, for years, researchers have struggled to develop effective drugs against the tumors. Now, Salk researchers have identified a …


High-fat diets alter gut bacteria, boosting colorectal cancer risk in mice

The inner folds of the intestines (purple) are different in healthy mice (left) compared to mice fed a high-fat diet (right). Salk researchers identified changes in bacteria and bile acids …

Salk scientists receive $1.5 million from Sol Goldman Charitable Trust to research multiple sclerosis treatments

LA JOLLA—Salk Professor Ronald Evans and an interdisciplinary group of Institute researchers have been awarded a two-year, $1.5 million grant from the Sol Goldman Charitable Trust at the direction of …


Salk scientists develop compound that reverses gut inflammation in mice

LA JOLLA—A drug developed by Salk Institute researchers acts like a master reset switch in the intestines. The compound, called FexD, has previously been found to lower cholesterol, burn fat, …


Ten Salk professors named among best and most highly cited researchers in the world

LA JOLLA—Salk Professors Joseph Ecker, Ronald Evans, Rusty Gage, Christian Metallo, Satchidananda Panda, Reuben Shaw, and Kay Tye, along with Assistant Professor Jesse Dixon, have been named to the Highly Cited …


The protein that keeps the pancreas from digesting itself

LA JOLLA—Every day, your pancreas produces about one cup of digestive juices, a mixture of molecules that can break down the food you eat. But if these powerful molecules become …


How obesity can rewire the immune system and the response to immunotherapy—and how to change that

LA JOLLA—When mice with atopic dermatitis—a common type of allergic skin inflammation—are treated with drugs that target the immune system, their thickened, itchy skin generally heals quickly. But scientists have …


The Lustgarten Foundation and Salk Institute announce strategic pancreatic cancer research partnership

LA JOLLA/NEW YORK—The Lustgarten Foundation and Salk Institute today announced a new strategic partnership supported by a $5 million grant and focused on identifying and validating potential targets for new …


Salk Professor Ronald Evans awarded $1.2 million by Larry L. Hillblom Foundation to study a new druggable pathway that could help treat diabetes

LA JOLLA—Professor Ronald Evans will receive $1.2 million over four years as part of a Network Grant from the Larry L. Hillblom Foundation to examine a molecular pathway that regulates …


Salk researchers find a new route for regulating blood sugar levels independent of insulin

LA JOLLA—The discovery of insulin 100 years ago opened a door that would lead to life and hope for millions of people with diabetes. Ever since then, insulin, produced in …


Salk scientists receive the 2021 ASPIRE award to study pancreatic cancer

LA JOLLA—Professor Ronald Evans and Assistant Professor Dannielle Engle have been granted a 2021 ASPIRE (Accelerating Scientific Platforms and Innovative Research) award to study the cellular and molecular drivers of …


Researchers identify neurons involved in overdose deaths

LA JOLLA—It’s long been known that opioid overdose deaths are caused by disrupted breathing, but the actual mechanism by which these drugs suppress respiration was not understood. Now, a new …


Salk scientist Ronald Evans receives 2021 Asan Award in Basic Medicine

LA JOLLA—Salk Professor Ronald Evans, director of Salk’s Gene Expression Laboratory and March of Dimes Chair in Molecular and Developmental Biology, has been awarded the 2021 Asan Award in Basic …


First immune-evading cells created to treat type 1 diabetes

LA JOLLA—Salk Institute scientists have made a major advance in the pursuit of a safe and effective treatment for type 1 diabetes, an illness that impacts an estimated 1.6 million …


Giant leap in diagnosing liver disease

LA JOLLA—Chronic liver disease represents a major global public health problem affecting an estimated 844 million people, according to the World Health Organization. It is among the top causes of …


Salk scientist Ronald Evans receives a 2020 NOMIS Distinguished Scientist Award

LA JOLLA—Salk Professor Ronald Evans, Howard Hughes Medical investigator and director of Salk’s Gene Expression Laboratory, has been awarded a 2020 NOMIS Distinguished Scientist and Scholar Award by the NOMIS Foundation, …


Eight Salk professors named among most highly cited researchers in the world

LA JOLLA—Salk Professors Joanne Chory, Joseph Ecker, Ronald Evans, Rusty Gage, Juan Carlos Izpisua Belmonte, Terrence Sejnowski, Reuben Shaw and Kay Tye have been named to the Highly Cited Researchers list by Clarivate Analytics. …


Salk scientists uncover how high-fat diets drive colorectal cancer growth

LA JOLLA—As cancer death rates drop overall, doctors have noted a frightening anomaly: deaths from colorectal cancer in people under 55 appear to be creeping up. According to the American …


Salk scientist Ronald Evans named 2018 AAAS Fellow

LA JOLLA—Salk Professor and Howard Hughes Medical Investigator Ronald Evans, who is also director of Salk’s Gene Expression Laboratory, has been a named a 2018 Fellow of the American Association …


$1.6 Million CIRM grant supports potential diabetes treatment

LA JOLLA—Approximately 1.25 million Americans are living with type 1 diabetes (T1D), with an additional 40,000 people newly diagnosed every year. T1D is an autoimmune disease that destroys insulin-producing pancreatic …


Salk researchers win five competitive grants for cancer research

LA JOLLA—Salk Institute scientists Ronald Evans, Diana Hargreaves, Tony Hunter, Graham McVicker and Geoffrey Wahl are among the first wave of researchers to receive funding from Padres Pedal the Cause, …


Boosting the effects of Vitamin D to tackle diabetes

LA JOLLA—More than 27 million people in the United States are living with type 2 diabetes, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. As the population ages and a …


Salk Institute launches Conquering Cancer Initiative

LA JOLLA—On Friday, April 20, 2018, the Salk Institute launched a new initiative called Conquering Cancer, to harness specific and emerging scientific strategies to tackle the five deadliest cancers: pancreatic, …


Molecule that gives energy-burning brown fat its identity could lead to drugs for obesity

LA JOLLA—While most fat cells in the human body store energy, everyone has a small subset of brown fat cells that do the opposite—burn energy and generate heat. Now, Salk …


Salk scientists find power switch for muscles

LA JOLLA—If you’ve ever wondered how strenuous exercise translates into better endurance, researchers at the Salk Institute may have your answer. In a study published in the journal Cell Reports …


Immune cell policing offers insights into cancer, autoimmune disease

LA JOLLA—Regulatory T cells (Tregs) are the traffic cops of the immune system. They instruct other types of immune cells on when to stop and when to go. Learning how …


Salk researchers awarded $2.5 million for innovative pancreatic cancer clinical trial

LA JOLLA—Salk Professor and HHMI Investigator Ronald Evans has been awarded $2.5 million by Stand Up To Cancer (SU2C) as part of a multi-institution team to conduct clinical studies to …


“Exercise-in-a-pill” boosts athletic endurance by 70 percent

LA JOLLA—Every week, there seems to be another story about the health benefits of running. That’s great—but what if you can’t run? For the elderly, obese or otherwise mobility-limited, the …


Pancreatic tumors rely on signals from surrounding cells

Tumor cells stained with a marker for cancer (green) appear near stromal cells (red).

Click here for a high-resolution image

Credit: Salk Institute

LA JOLLA—Just as an invasive weed might need nutrient-rich …


Powering up the circadian rhythm

LA JOLLA—At noon every day, levels of genes and proteins throughout your body are drastically different than they are at midnight. Disruptions to this 24-hour cycle of physiological activity are …


Salk scientists find “secret sauce” for personalized, functional insulin-producing cells

LA JOLLA—Salk scientists have solved a longstanding problem in the effort to create replacement cells for diabetic patients. The team uncovered a hidden energy switch that, when flipped, powers up …


Fighting liver fibrosis, the wound that never heals

LA JOLLA—Chronic damage to the liver eventually creates a wound that never heals. This condition, called fibrosis, gradually replaces normal liver cells—which detoxify the food and liquid we consume—with more …


Blocking immune cell treats new type of age-related diabetes

LA JOLLA—Diabetes is often the result of obesity and poor diet choices, but for some older adults the disease might simply be a consequence of aging. New research has discovered that …


Salk professor Ron Evans to co-lead ‘Dream Team’ of pancreatic cancer researchers from US, UK

LA JOLLA, CA—The Salk Institute will co-lead a new transatlantic ‘Dream Team’ of researchers that will launch a fresh attack on pancreatic cancer, one of the deadliest forms of cancer …


A high-fat diet may alleviate mitochondrial disease

LA JOLLA–Mice that have a genetic version of mitochondrial disease can easily be mistaken for much older animals by the time they are nine months old: they have thinning grey …


Food for thought: Master protein enhances learning and memory

LA JOLLA–Just as some people seem built to run marathons and have an easier time going for miles without tiring, others are born with a knack for memorizing things, from …


“Imaginary meal” tricks the body into losing weight

LA JOLLA–Salk researchers have developed an entirely new type of pill that tricks the body into thinking it has consumed calories, causing it to burn fat. The compound effectively stopped …


Modified vitamin D shows promise as treatment for pancreatic cancer

LA JOLLA–A synthetic derivative of vitamin D was found by Salk Institute researchers to collapse the barrier of cells shielding pancreatic tumors, making this seemingly impenetrable cancer much more susceptible …


One injection stops diabetes in its tracks

LA JOLLA—In mice with diet-induced diabetes—the equivalent of type 2 diabetes in humans—a single injection of the protein FGF1 is enough to restore blood sugar levels to a healthy range …


Salk professor named grantee in new pancreatic cancer research program

LA JOLLA—Ronald M. Evans, director of the Gene Expression Laboratory at Salk and Howard Hughes Medical Institute investigator, is one of three scientists chosen to receive $5 million in research …


Salk Education Outreach program wins AAAS grant

LA JOLLA—The Salk Institute’s award-winning Education Outreach program recently earned national recognition when it received a two-year pilot grant through the AAAS’s new National STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) …


Salk scientists find potential therapeutic target for Cushing’s disease

LA JOLLA, CA—Scientists at the Salk Institute for Biological Studies have identified a protein that drives the formation of pituitary tumors in Cushing’s disease, a development that may give clinicians …


Sunshine hormone, vitamin D, may offer hope for treating liver fibrosis

LA JOLLA, CA—Liver fibrosis results from an excessive accumulation of tough, fibrous scar tissue and occurs in most types of chronic liver diseases. In industrialized countries, the main causes of …


Canker sore drug may aid in weight loss

LA JOLLA, CA—A team of scientists, including researchers from the Salk Institute for Biological Studies, has discovered that a drug used to treat canker sores appears to reverse obesity in …


From feast to famine: A metabolic switch that may help diabetes treatment

LA JOLLA, CA—Humans are built to hunger for fat, packing it on during times of feast and burning it during periods of famine. But when deluged by foods rich in …


Salk scientists redraw the blueprint of the body’s biological clock

LA JOLLA, CA—The discovery of a major gear in the biological clock that tells the body when to sleep and metabolize food may lead to new drugs to treat sleep …


Salk scientist Ronald M. Evans wins 2012 Wolf Prize in Medicine

LA JOLLA, CA—Salk Institute scientist Ronald Evans has been selected as the recipient of the prestigious 2012 Wolf Prize in Medicine, Israel’s highest award for achievements benefiting mankind. According to …


Tweaking a gene makes muscles twice as strong

LA JOLLA, CA—An international team of scientists has created super-strong, high-endurance mice and worms by suppressing a natural muscle-growth inhibitor, suggesting treatments for age-related or genetics-related muscle degeneration are within …


Salk breathes new life into fight against primary killer of premature infants

LA JOLLA, CA—A discovery by scientists at the Salk Institute for Biological Studies might explain why some premature infants fail to respond to existing treatments for a deadly respiratory distress …


Scientists discover genetic switch that increases muscle blood supply

LA JOLLA, CA—Many people suffer from a devastating condition known as critical limb ischemia (CLI) that can lead to muscle wasting and even amputation. The disease is linked to …


The food-energy cellular connection revealed: Metabolic master switch sets the biological clock in body tissues

LA JOLLA, CA—Our body’s activity levels fall and rise to the beat of our internal drums-the 24-hour cycles that govern fundamental physiological functions, from sleeping and feeding patterns to the …


Exercise in a pill

LA JOLLA, CA—Trying to reap the health benefits of exercise? Forget treadmills and spin classes, researchers at the Salk Institute for Biological Studies may have found a way around the …


New potential drug target for the treatment of atherosclerosis

La Jolla, CA – A nuclear receptor protein, known for controlling the ability of cells to burn fat, also exerts powerful anti-inflammatory effects in arteries, suppressing atherosclerosis in mice prone …


Salk researchers uncover molecular connection between excessive nutrient levels and insulin resistance

La Jolla, CA – For quite some time now, scientists suspected the so-called hexosamine pathway – a small side business of the main sugar processing enterprise inside a cell – …


Newborn brain cells modulate learning and memory

La Jolla, CA – Boosted by physical and mental exercise, neural stem cells continue to sprout new neurons throughout life, but the exact function of these newcomers has been the …


Regulator of lipid metabolism ensures high quality breast milk

La Jolla, CA – Mouse mammary glands deficient in PPARγ, a nuclear receptor that regulates the storage of fat, produce toxic milk that causes inflammation and baldness in suckling pups, …


Salk Scientist Ronald M. Evans Receives America’s Top Prize in Medicine

La Jolla, CA – Ronald M. Evans, Ph.D., Professor in the Salk Institute’s Gene Expression Laboratory and a Howard Hughes Medical Investigator, has been named a recipient of …


Ronald M. Evans to receive Harvey Prize for outstanding contributions to human health

La Jolla, CA – Dr. Ronald M. Evans, professor and head of the Gene Expression Laboratory of the Salk Institute for Biological Studies, was awarded the …


Salk scientist Ron Evans wins 2006 Gairdner Award for his discovery of hormone sensors

La Jolla, CA – Ronald M. Evans, Ph.D., professor and head of the Gene Expression Laboratory of the Salk Institute for Biological Studies, has …


Genetically modified mice are resistant to obesity despite a high fat diet

La Jolla, CA – Ravenous mice that chomp down as if there were no tomorrow yet stay lean and mean? Shutting down two genes that modulate a body’s energy balance …


Salk scientist awarded Glenn T. Seaborg Medal

La Jolla, CA – Ronald M. Evans, Ph.D., who during his 27 years of research at the Salk Institute has made major discoveries about how hormones and drugs control the …


France’s highest scientific honor to be awarded this year to Salk Institute scientist Ronald M. Evans

La Jolla, CA – Ronald M. Evans, Ph.D., professor and head of the Gene Expression Laboratory of the Salk Institute for Biological Studies, will receive the 2005 Grande Médaille D’Or …


Altering steroid receptor genes creates fat burning muscles, resistance to weight gain, and lowered inflammation.

La Jolla, CA – The Salk Institute scientist who earlier discovered that enhancing the function of a single protein produced a mouse with an innate resistance to weight gain and …


Salk Institute’s Ronald M. Evans Awarded 2004 Lasker Award For Basic Medical Research

La Jolla, CA – Ronald M. Evans, Ph.D. known for his discoveries of genetic switches that link hormones to gene control, is this year’s recipient of the highly prestigious 2004 …


Marathoning Mice Could Have Olympian Effects on Obesity

La Jolla, CA – A molecular switch known to regulate fat metabolism appears to prevent obesity and turns laboratory mice into marathon runners, a Salk Institute study has found.

The discovery …


Stem Cell Regulator Could Hold Key to Staving Off Age-related Brain Changes

La Jolla, CA – A brain-specific genetic switch protein known as a receptor has been found to control the fate of adult stem cells in the brain, according to a …


Salk Researcher named to Institute of Medicine

La Jolla, CA – Ronald Evans, the March of Dimes Chair in Developmental and Cell Biology at the Salk Institute, was named to the Institute of Medicine (IOM). Part of …


Cellular Fat Sensor Slows Heart Disease

La Jolla, CA – A cellular sensor of dietary fats slows the development of lesions that lead to heart disease, a Salk Institute study has found.

The study, which appears in …


Salk Researchers Ranked in Top 25 of Scientific Citations Worldwide

La Jolla, CA – Two Salk Institute researchers ranked within the top 25 scientists worldwide for their work’s influence in any field, according to an organization that monitors the impact …


Salk Professor Ronald Evans Awarded Two Major Prizes

La Jolla, CA – Professor Ronald Evans, the March of Dimes Chair in Molecular and Developmental Biology, has received the 2003 March of Dimes Prize in Developmental Biology for his …


Salk Researchers Find Receptor That Controls Obesity

La Jolla, CA – A cellular receptor that balances the accumulation of fat and fat burning in the body may be a new target for anti-obesity and cholesterol-fighting drugs, according …


Vitamin A Deficiency Impairs Learning Functions In Reversible Manner

La Jolla, CA – Removing Vitamin A from the diets of mice diminishes chemical changes in the brain considered the hallmarks of learning and memory. When vitamin A is added …


Humanized Mouse To Become Basic Tool To Test Drug-Drug Interactions

La Jolla, CA – A genetically engineered mouse, equipped with a human gene that senses potentially toxic substances in the body, including drugs, has been created by scientists at The …


Link between vitamin A and learning abilities established by team led by Salk researchers

La Jolla, CA – Forget something lately? If so, perhaps you should try an extra helping of sweet potatoes or other vitamin A-rich foods on the holiday table.

Researchers at the …


New steroid hormone has allure of its own

La Jolla, CA – The first steroid hormone unearthed in 30 years is a chemical cousin to the molecule that lures pigs to truffles, and like that rare and elusive …


Salk scientists identify molecular link between dietary fat and colon cancer

La Jolla, CA – Although it's now common wisdom that dietary fat is related to some cancers, medical researchers have not understood the underlying mechanisms. In research reported in the …


Salk researchers find genetic feedback loop implicated in the early events of atherosclerotic plaque formation

La Jolla, CA – Salk Institute scientists today announced two research findings related to the development of atherosclerosis. The findings involve the discovery of a genetic feedback loop that contributes …


Education

BA, Bacteriology, University of California, Los Angeles
PhD, Microbiology and Immunology, University of California, Los Angeles
Postdoctoral Fellow, Rockefeller University


Affiliations


Awards & Honors

  • Japan Prize in the field of Medical Science and Pharmaceutical Science, 2024
  • Asan Award in Basic Medicine, 2021
  • NOMIS Distinguished Scientist and Scholar Award, 2020
  • Louisa Gross Horwitz Prize, 2018
  • American Association for The Advancement of Science Fellow, 2018
  • Frontiers in Science Award, 2015
  • The Lustgarten Foundation Distinguished Scholar Award, 2014
  • American Association For Cancer Research Fellow, 2014
  • Society for Endocrinology, United Kingdom, Dale Medal, 2013
  • Wolf Foundation, Israel, Wolf Prize In Medicine, 2012
  • Technion University, Israel, Harvey Prize, 2006
  • Gairdner Foundation International Award, 2006
  • “Grande Medaille d’Or” of the French Academy Of Sciences, 2005
  • Glenn T. Seaborg Medal, UCLA, 2005
  • Albert Lasker Basic Medical Research Award, 2004
  • Keio Medical Science Prize, 2003
  • General Motors Cancer Research Foundation Alfred P. Sloan Medal, 2003
  • Institute of Medicine of the National Academies, 2003
  • First Bristol-Myers Squibb Award for Distinguished Achievement in Metabolic Research, 2000
  • The Endocrine Society Fred Conrad Koch Award, 1999
  • California Museum of Science And Industry and the California Museum Foundation, California Scientist of the Year, 1994
  • National Academy of Sciences Member, 1989