Mayumi Fujita, MD, PhD

Research Interests

Dr. Fujita is a Vice Chair of Research and a tenured professor of Dermatology and Immunology & Microbiology, and a dermatologist at the Univ. of Colorado School of Medicine and VA Eastern Colorado Healthcare System. She is a Director of Research Services, Dermatology RC-1S. I have extensive training in cell biology, molecular biology, and immunology. The Fujita Lab investigates biological roles and molecular regulations of 1) IL-37 in adaptive immunity, 2) IL-1b, inflammasomes, and autoinflammation in human melanoma, 3) genotoxic metabolites in melanocytes and skin cells, and 4) intra-tumoral heterogeneity and plasticity in melanoma. Our lab was the first to demonstrate the tolerogenic nature of IL-37 in dendritic cells, and we have recently found that IL-37 is highly expressed in Treg cells and regulates Treg cell functionality. We are also one of the first groups to show the inflammasome platform in melanoma cells. We generated exciting mouse data from inflammasome inhibition. Dr. Fujita has trained 109 students/fellows in her research laboratory (24 undergraduate students, 15 graduate students, 20 medical students, 12 residents, 4 visiting scholars, 20 post-doc fellows, 9 research assistants/associates, and 5 junior faculty). The lab is currently funded by NIH/NIAID R01 (as a PI), JDRF research award (as a PI), NIH/NIAAA R21 (as a PI), VA Merit Awards (one as a PI and the other two as a co-I), Golfers Against Cancer grant (as a PI), and Cancer League of Colorado (2 as co-PIs). https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/myncbi/mayumi.fujita.1/bibliography/public/

Publications

• J Strahan, M Fujita: Violaceous nodule on the knee. Arch Dermatol 145:715-720, 2009
• M Fujita, W High, S Asgari, C Lewis, R Gonzalez: Development of vitiligo during melanoma treatment with a novel survivin inhibitor: a case report and review of the literature. Int J of Dermatol 48: 426-430, 2009
• NB Goldstein, WU Johannes, AV Fadeliya, M Green, M Fujita, DA Norris, YG Shellman: Active Nras and Braf inhibit anoikis by downregulating Bim expression in melanoma cells. J Invest Dermatol 129: 432-437, 2009
• LA Miller, NB Goldstein, WU Johannes, C Walton, M Fujita, DA Norris, YG Shellman: BH3 mimetic ABT-737 synergistically kills melanoma cells with a proteasome inhibitor. J Invest Dermatol 129: 964-971, 2009
• M Okamoto, W Liu, Y Luo, A Tanaka, X Cai, DA Norris, CA Dinarello, M Fujita: Constitutively active inflammasome in human melanoma cells mediating autoinflammation via caspase-1 processing and secretion of interleukin-1?? J Biol Chem 285: 6477-88, 2010
• J Strahan, JA Chorny, JL Cohen, M Fujita: Combined multifocal indeterminate cell histiocytosis and basal cell carcinoma. Arch Dermatol 146:346-7, 2010
• X. Wang, M. Fujita (corresponding author), R. Prado, A. Tousson, H-C. Hsu, A. Schottelius, D.R. Kelly, P.A. Yang, Q. Wu, J. Chen, H. Xu, C.A. Elmets, J.D. Mountz, C.K.III Edwards: Visualizing CD4 T cell migration into inflamed skin and its inhibition by CCR4/CCR10 blockades using in vivo imaging model. Br J Dermatol 162: 487-96, 2010
• R Prado, S Brice, S Fukuda, T Hashimoto, M Fujita: Paraneoplastic pemphigus herpetiformis with IgG antibodies to desmoglein 3 and without mucosal lesions. Arch Dermatol 147:67-71, 2011
• James D Jensen,, Mayumi Fujita, and Robert P. Dellavalle. Validation of Psoriasis Clinical Severity and Outcome Measures: Searching for a Gold Standard. Arch Dermatol 147:95-98, 2011
• A Anwar, DA Norris, M Fujita: Ubiquitin proteasomal pathway mediated degradation of p53 in melanoma. Arch Biochem Biophys 508:198-203, 2011
• A Tanaka, James D Jensen, Renata Prado, H Riemann, YG Shellman, DA Norris, L Chin, C Yee, M Fujita: Whole recombinant yeast vaccine induces anti-tumor immunity and improves survival in a genetically engineered mouse model of melanoma. Gene Therapy 18, 2011 (in press).
• R Prado, James D Jensen, M Okamoto, Y Luo, KD Lewis, M Fujita: Metastatic melanoma manifesting with purulent nodules composed of neutrophils and melanoma cells. Accepted for publication in European Journal of Dermatology
• Y Luo, S Robinson, J Fujita, L Siconolfi, J Magidson, CK Edwards, K Wassman, K Strom, DA Norris, D Bankaitis-Davis, WA Robinson, M Fujita: Transcriptome profiling of whole blood cells identifies PLEK2 and C1QB in human melanoma. Accepted for publication in PLoS ONE
• Prado R, Jensen JD, Okamoto M, Luo Y, Lewis KD, Fujita M: Metastatic melanoma manifesting with purulent nodules composed of neutrophils and melanoma cells. Eur J Dermatol 21 (4): 642-3, 2011. PubMed PMID: 21840791
• Ellis LZ, Liu W, Luo Y, Okamoto M, Qu D, Dunn JH, Fujita M: Green tea polyphenol epigallocatechin-3-gallate suppresses melanoma growth by inhibiting inflammasome and IL-1b secretion. Biochem Biophys Res Commun. 414: 551-6, 2011. PubMed PMID: 21982776
• Dunn JH, Ellis LZ, Fujita M: Inflammasomes as molecular mediators of inflammation and cancer: Potential role in melanoma. Cancer Lett. 314: 24-33, 2012. PubMed PMID: 22050907
• Luo Y, Ellis LZ, Dallaglio K, Takeda M, Robinson WA, Robinson S, Liu W, Lewis KD, McCarter MD, Gonzalez R, Norris DA, Roop DR, Spritz RA, Ahn NG, Fujita M: Side population cells from human melanoma tumors reveal diverse mechanisms of chemoresistance. Accepted for publication in the Journal of Investigative Dermatology
• Luo Y, Dallaglio K, Chen Y, Robinson WA, Robinson S, McCarter MD, Gonzalez R, Thompson DC, Norris DA, Roop DR, Vasiliou V, Fujita M: ALDH1A isozymes are markers of human melanoma stem cells and potential therapeutic targets. In revision for publication in Stem Cells
• Reuland SN, Goldstein NB, Partyka KA, Cooper DA, Fujita M, Norris DA, Shellman YG: The combination of BH3-mimetic ABT-737 with the alkylating agent temozolomide induces strong synergistic killing of melanoma cells independent of p53. PLoS One 6: e24294, 2011. Epub 2011 Aug 29. PubMed PMID: 21897876; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC3163662
• Reuland SN, Goldstein NB, Partyka KA, Smith S, Luo Y, Fujita M, Gonzalez R, Lewis K, Norris DA, Shellman YG: ABT-737 synergizes with Bortezomib to kill melanoma cells. Biology Open 000:1-9. doi: 10.1242/bio.2011035. Epub 2011 Dec 1.
• Jensen JD, Dunn JH, Luo Y, Liu W, Fujita M, Dellavalle RP: Ellagic acid inhibits melanoma growth in vitro. Dermatology Reports 3: e36, 201
• Domenico J, Lucas JJ, Fujita M and Gelfand EW: Susceptibility to Vaccinia Virus Infection and Spread in Mice Is Determined by Age at Infection, Allergen Sensitization and Mast Cell Status. Int Arch Allergy Immunol 2012;158:196-205. doi: 10.1159/000330647
• Luo Y, Dallaglio K, Chen Y, Robinson WA, Robinson S, McCarter MD, Wang J, Gonzalez R, Thompson DC, Norris DA, Roop DR, Vasiliou V, Fujita M: ALDH1A isozymes are markers of human melanoma stem cells and potential therapeutic targets. Stem Cells 30(10): 2100-13, 2012. PubMed PMID: 22887839
• 62. Vasiliou V, Thompson DC, Smith C, Fujita M, Chen Y: Aldehyde dehydrogenases: from eye crystallins to metabolic disease and cancer stem cells. Aldehyde dehydrogenases: From eye crystallins to metabolic disease and cancer stem cells. Chem Biol Interact. 2012 Nov 16. pii: S0009-2797(12)00233-5. doi: 10.1016/j.cbi.2012.10.026. [Epub ahead of print] PubMed PMID: 23159885
• Liu W, Luo Y, Dunn JH, Dinarello CA, Norris DA, Fujita M: Dual role of apoptosis-associated speck-like protein containing a CARD (ASC) in tumorigenesis of human melanoma. J Invest Dermatol 133(2): 518-27, 2013. PubMed PMID: 22931929
• 63. Edwards CKIII, Green J, Volk HD, Schiff M, Kotzin BL, Mitsuuya H, Kawaguchi T, Sakata K, Cheronis J, Trollinger D, Bankaitis-Davis D, Dinarello CA, Norris DA, Bevilacqua MP, Fujita M (corresponding author), Burmeister GR: Combined anti-tumor necrosis factor-a therapy and DMARD therapy in rheumatoid arthritis patients reduces inflammatory gene expression in whole blood compared to DMARD therapy alone. Front Immunol 3:366, 2012. doi: 10.3389/fimmu.2012.00366. PubMed PMID: 23264777
• Nguyen N, Luo Y, Fujita M: ALDH isozymes: markers of cancer stem cells in human melanoma. Accepted for publication in Expert Review of Dermatology
• Luo Y, Nguyen N, Fujita M: Isolation of human melanoma stem cells using ALDH as a marker. Accepted for publication in Current Protocols in Stem Cell Biology
• Nguyen N, Luo Y, Fujita M: Aldehyde dehydrogenase isozymes: markers of cancer stem cells in human melanoma. Expert Rev Dermatol 8(2):111-3, 2013. doi: 10.1586/edm.13.2
• Liu W, Luo Y, Dunn JH, Norris DA, Dinarello CA, Fujita M. Dual role of apoptosis-associated speck-like protein containing a CARD (ASC) in tumorigenesis of human melanoma. J Invest Dermatol. 2013 Feb;133(2):518-27. PubMed PMID: 22931929
• Vasiliou V, Thompson DC, Smith C, Fujita M, Chen Y. Aldehyde dehydrogenases: from eye crystallins to metabolic disease and cancer stem cells. Chem Biol Interact. 2013 Feb 25;202(1-3):2-10. PubMed PMID: 23159885
• Luo Y, Nguyen N, Fujita M: Isolation of human melanoma stem cells using ALDH as a marker. Curr. Protoc. Stem Cell Biol. 26:3.8.1-3.8.10, 2013
• Luo Y, Cai X, Liu S, Wang S, Nold-Petry CA, Nold MF, Bufler P, Norris D, Dinarello CA, Fujita M. Suppression of antigen-specific adaptive immunity by IL-37 via induction of tolerogenic dendritic cells. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2014 Oct 21;111(42):15178-83. PubMed PMID: 25294929
• Chen HM, Fujita M. IL-37: A new player in immune tolerance. Cytokine. 2015 Mar;72(1):113-4. PubMed PMID: 25592113
• Li S, Neff CP, Barber K, Hong J, Luo Y, Azam T, Palmer BE, Fujita M, Garlanda C, Mantovani A, Kim S, Dinarello CA. Extracellular forms of IL-37 inhibit innate inflammation in vitro and in vivo but require the IL-1 family decoy receptor IL-1R8. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2015 Feb 24;112(8):2497-502. PubMed PMID: 25654981
• Mukherjee N, Reuland SN, Lu Y, Luo Y, Lambert K, Fujita M, Robinson WA, Robinson SE, Norris DA, Shellman YG. Combining a BCL2 Inhibitor with the Retinoid Derivative Fenretinide Targets Melanoma Cells Including Melanoma Initiating Cells. J Invest Dermatol. 2015 Mar;135(3):842-50. PubMed PMID: 25350317
• Snedecor ER, Sung CC, Moncayo A, Rothstein BE, Mockler DC, Tonnesen MG, Jones EC, Fujita M, Clark RA, Shroyer KR, Chen J. Loss of Primary Cilia in Melanoma Cells Is Likely Independent of Proliferation and Cell Cycle Progression. J Invest Dermatol. 2015 Jan 28. [Epub ahead of print] PubMed PMID: 25629424
• Nguyen N, Couts K, Luo Y, Fujita M: Understanding melanoma stem cells. In print for Melanoma Management
• Jeffrey H. Dunn, Mayumi Fujita: PYCARD [N-terminal Pyrin-like domain (PYD) and Caspase Recruitment Domain (CARD) containing protein]. Atlas of Genetics and Cytogenetics in Oncology and Haematology, 2014. http://atlasgeneticsoncology.org/Genes/PYCARDID712ch16p12.html
• Chen HM, Fujita M. IL-37: a new player in immune tolerance. Cytokine. 2015 Mar;72(1):113-4. PubMed PMID: 25592113
• Li S, Neff CP, Barber K, Hong J, Luo Y, Azam T, Palmer BE, Fujita M, Garlanda C, Mantovani A, Kim S, Dinarello CA. Extracellular forms of IL-37 inhibit innate inflammation in vitro and in vivo but require the IL-1 family decoy receptor IL-1R8. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2015 Feb 24;112(8):2497-502. PubMed PMID: 25654981
• Mukherjee N, Reuland SN, Lu Y, Luo Y, Lambert K, Fujita M, Robinson WA, Robinson SE, Norris DA, Shellman YG. Combining a BCL2 inhibitor with the retinoid derivative fenretinide targets melanoma cells including melanoma initiating cells. J Invest Dermatol. 2015 Mar;135(3):842-50. PubMed PMID: 25350317
• Snedecor ER, Sung CC, Moncayo A, Rothstein BE, Mockler DC, Tonnesen MG, Jones EC, Fujita M, Clark RA, Shroyer KR, Chen J. Loss of primary cilia in melanoma cells is likely independent of proliferation and cell cycle progression. J Invest Dermatol. 2015 May;135(5):1456-8. PubMed PMID: 25629424
• Hawkes JE, Nguyen GH, Fujita M, Florell SR, Callis Duffin K, Krueger GG, O'Connell RM. microRNAs in Psoriasis. J Invest Dermatol. 2016 Feb;136(2):365-71. PubMed PMID: 26802234
• Mukherjee N, Lu Y, Almeida A, Lambert K, Shiau CW, Su JC, Luo Y, Fujita M, Robinson WA, Robinson SE, Norris DA, Shellman YG. Use of a MCL-1 inhibitor alone to de-bulk melanoma and in combination to kill melanoma initiating cells. Oncotarget. 2016 Apr 12. [Epub ahead of print] PubMed PMID: 27086916
• Nguyen N, Couts KL, Luo Y, Fujita M. Understanding melanoma stem cells. Melanoma Manag. 2015;2(2):179-188. PubMed PMID: 26594315
• Dinarello CA, Nold-Petry C, Nold M, Fujita M, Li S, Kim S, Bufler P. Suppression of innate inflammation and immunity by interleukin-37. Eur J Immunol. 2016 May;46(5):1067-81. PubMed PMID: 27060871
• Mukherjee N, Schwan JV, Fujita M, Norris DA, Shellman YG. Alternative Treatments For Melanoma: Targeting BCL-2 Family Members to De-Bulk and Kill Cancer Stem Cells. J Invest Dermatol. 2015 Sep;135(9):2155-61. PubMed PMID: 25947358
• Højen JF, Rasmussen TA, Andersen KL, Winckelmann AA, Laursen RR, Gunst JD, Møller HJ, Fujita M, Østergaard L, Søgaard OS, Dinarello CA, Tolstrup M. Interleukin-37 Expression Is Increased in Chronic HIV-1-Infected Individuals and Is Associated with Inflammation and the Size of the Total Viral Reservoir. Mol Med. 2015 Apr 14;21:337-45. PubMed PMID: 25879630
• Singh SP, Schwartz MP, Tokuda EY, Luo Y, Rogers RE, Fujita M, Ahn NG, Anseth KS. A synthetic modular approach for modeling the role of the 3D microenvironment in tumor progression. Sci Rep. 2015 Dec 7;5:17814. PubMed PMID: 26638791
• Mukherjee N, Almeida A, Partyka KA, Lu Y, Schwan JV, Lambert K, Rogers M, Robinson WA, Robinson SE, Applegate AJ, Amato CM, Luo Y, Fujita M, Norris DA, Shellman YG. Combining a GSI and BCL-2 inhibitor to overcome melanoma's resistance to current treatments. Oncotarget. 2016 Dec 20;7(51):84594-84607. PubMed PMID: 27829238
• Mukherjee N, Lu Y, Almeida A, Lambert K, Shiau CW, Su JC, Luo Y, Fujita M, Robinson WA, Robinson SE, Norris DA, Shellman YG. Use of a MCL-1 inhibitor alone to de-bulk melanoma and in combination to kill melanoma initiating cells. Oncotarget. 2017 Jul 18;8(29):46801-46817. PubMed PMID: 27086916
• Zhai Z, Liu W, Kaur M, Luo Y, Domenico J, Samson JM, Shellman YG, Norris DA, Dinarello CA, Spritz RA, Fujita M. NLRP1 promotes tumor growth by enhancing inflammasome activation and suppressing apoptosis in metastatic melanoma. Oncogene. 2017 Jul 6;36(27):3820-3830. PubMed PMID: 28263976
• Li Y, Fujita M, Boraschi D. Endotoxin Contamination in Nanomaterials Leads to the Misinterpretation of Immunosafety Results. Front Immunol. 2017;8:472. PubMed PMID: 28533772
• Pearson DR, Fujita M, High WA. Fulminant Mycosis Fungoides with Tissue Eosinophilia: A Unique Presentation of Two Cases with Acro-Periorbital Ulceration and An Aggressive Clinical Course. J Mol Biomark Diagn. 2017 May;8(3). PubMed PMID: 28758048
• Goldstein NB, Koster MI, Jones KL, Gao B, Hoaglin LG, Robinson SE, Wright MJ, Birlea SI, Luman A, Lambert KA, Shellman YG, Fujita M, Robinson WA, Roop DR, Norris DA, Birlea SA. Repigmentation of Human Vitiligo Skin by NBUVB Is Controlled by Transcription of GLI1 and Activation of the ß-Catenin Pathway in the Hair Follicle Bulge Stem Cells. J Invest Dermatol. 2018 Mar;138(3):657-668. PubMed PMID: 29054607
• Ravindran Menon D, Luo Y, Arcaroli JJ, Liu S, KrishnanKutty LN, Osborne DG, Li Y, Samson JM, Bagby S, Tan AC, Robinson WA, Messersmith WA, Fujita M. CDK1 Interacts with Sox2 and Promotes Tumor Initiation in Human Melanoma. Cancer Res. 2018 Dec 1;78(23):6561-6574. PubMed PMID: 30297536
• Goldstein NB, Koster MI, Jones KL, Gao B, Hoaglin LG, Robinson SE, Wright MJ, Birlea SI, Luman A, Lambert KA, Shellman YG, Fujita M, Robinson WA, Roop DR, Norris DA, Birlea SA. Repigmentation of Human Vitiligo Skin by NBUVB Is Controlled by Transcription of GLI1 and Activation of the ß-Catenin Pathway in the Hair Follicle Bulge Stem Cells. J Invest Dermatol. 2018 Mar;138(3):657-668. PubMed PMID: 29054607
• Sarvi S, Crispin R, Lu Y, Zeng L, Hurley TD, Houston DR, von Kriegsheim A, Chen CH, Mochly-Rosen D, Ranzani M, Mathers ME, Xu X, Xu W, Adams DJ, Carragher NO, Fujita M, Schuchter L, Unciti-Broceta A, Brunton VG, Patton EE. ALDH1 Bio-activates Nifuroxazide to Eradicate ALDH(High) Melanoma-Initiating Cells. Cell Chem Biol. 2018 Dec 20;25(12):1456-1469.e6. PubMed PMID: 30293938
• Filipp FV, Birlea S, Bosenberg MW, Brash D, Cassidy PB, Chen S, D'Orazio JA, Fujita M, Goh BK, Herlyn M, Indra AK, Larue L, Leachman SA, Le Poole C, Liu-Smith F, Manga P, Montoliu L, Norris DA, Shellman Y, Smalley KSM, Spritz RA, Sturm RA, Swetter SM, Terzian T, Wakamatsu K, Weber JS, Box NF. Frontiers in pigment cell and melanoma research. Pigment Cell Melanoma Res. 2018 Nov;31(6):728-735. PubMed PMID: 30281213
• Armstrong AW, Chambers CJ, Maverakis E, Cheng MY, Dunnick CA, Chren MM, Gelfand JM, Wong DJ, Gibbons BM, Gibbons CM, Torres J, Steel AC, Wang EA, Clark CM, Singh S, Kornmehl HA, Wilken R, Florek AG, Ford AR, Ma C, Ehsani-Chimeh N, Boddu S, Fujita M, Young PM, Rivas-Sanchez C, Cornejo BI, Serna LC, Carlson ER, Lane CJ. Effectiveness of Online vs In-Person Care for Adults With Psoriasis: A Randomized Clinical Trial. JAMA Netw Open. 2018 Oct 5;1(6):e183062. PubMed PMID: 30646223
• Kuprys PV, Tsukamoto H, Gao B, Jia L, McGowan J, Coopersmith CM, Moreno MC, Hulsebus H, Meena AS, Souza-Smith FM, Roper P, Foster MT, Raju SV, Marshall SA, Fujita M, Curtis BJ, Wyatt TA, Mandrekar P, Kovacs EJ, Choudhry MA. Summary of the 2018 Alcohol and Immunology Research Interest Group (AIRIG) meeting. Alcohol. 2018 Aug 24;77:11-18. [Epub ahead of print] PubMed PMID: 30763905
• Matsumoto A, Ito S, Wakamatsu K, Ichiba M, Vasiliou V, Akao C, Song BJ, Fujita M. Ethanol induces skin hyperpigmentation in mice with aldehyde dehydrogenase 2 deficiency. Chem Biol Interact. 2019 Apr 1;302:61-66. PubMed PMID: 30721697
• Menon DR, Fujita M. A state of stochastic cancer stemness through the CDK1-SOX2 axis. Oncotarget. 2019 Apr 5;10(27):2583-2585. PubMed PMID: 31080551
• Osborne DG, Domenico J, Luo Y, Reid AL, Amato C, Zhai Z, Gao D, Ziman M, Dinarello CA, Robinson WA, Fujita M. Interleukin-37 is highly expressed in regulatory T cells of melanoma patients and enhanced by melanoma cell secretome. Mol Carcinog. 2019 Sep;58(9):1670-1679. PubMed PMID: 31099111
• Samson JM, Ravindran Menon D, Smith DE, Baird E, Kitano T, Gao D, Tan AC, Fujita M. Clinical implications of ALDH1A1 and ALDH1A3 mRNA expression in melanoma subtypes. Chem Biol Interact. 2019 Dec 1;314:108822. PubMed PMID: 31580832
• Kuprys PV, Tsukamoto H, Gao B, Jia L, McGowan J, Coopersmith CM, Moreno MC, Hulsebus H, Meena AS, Souza-Smith FM, Roper P, Foster MT, Raju SV, Marshall SA, Fujita M, Curtis BJ, Wyatt TA, Mandrekar P, Kovacs EJ, Choudhry MA. Summary of the 2018 Alcohol and Immunology Research Interest Group (AIRIG) meeting. Alcohol. 2019 Jun;77:11-18. PubMed PMID: 30763905
• Ravindran Menon D, Hammerlindl H, Torrano J, Schaider H, Fujita M. Epigenetics and metabolism at the crossroads of stress-induced plasticity, stemness and therapeutic resistance in cancer. Theranostics. 2020;10(14):6261-6277. doi: 10.7150/thno.42523. eCollection 2020. Review. PubMed PMID: 32483452
• Leachman SA, Hornyak TJ, Barsh G, Bastian BC, Brash DE, Cleaver JE, Cooper CD, D'Orazio JA, Fujita M, Holmen SL, Indra AK, Kraemer KH, Le Poole IC, Lo RS, Lund AW, Manga P, Pavan WJ, Setaluri V, Stemwedel CE, Kulesz-Martin MF. Melanoma to Vitiligo: The Melanocyte in Biology & Medicine-Joint Montagna Symposium on the Biology of Skin/PanAmerican Society for Pigment Cell Research Annual Meeting. J Invest Dermatol. 2019 Jul 23. [Epub ahead of print] PubMed PMID: 31348921
• Mukherjee N, Skees J, Todd KJ, West DA, Lambert KA, Robinson WA, Amato CM, Couts KL, Van Gulick R, MacBeth M, Nassar K, Tan AC, Zhai Z, Fujita M, Bagby SM, Dart CR, Lambert JR, Norris DA, Shellman YG. MCL1 inhibitors S63845/MIK665 plus Navitoclax synergistically kill difficult-to-treat melanoma cells. Cell Death Dis. 2020 Jun 8;11(6):443. doi: 10.1038/s41419-020-2646-2. PubMed PMID: 32513939
• Højen JF, Kristensen MLV, McKee AS, Wade MT, Azam T, Lunding LP, de Graaf DM, Swartzwelter BJ, Wegmann M, Tolstrup M, Beckman K, Fujita M, Fischer S, Dinarello CA. IL-1R3 blockade broadly attenuates the functions of six members of the IL-1 family, revealing their contribution to models of disease. Nat Immunol. 2019 Sep;20(9):1138-1149. PubMed PMID: 31427775
• Anwar A, Anwar H, Yamauchi T, Tseng R, Agarwal R, Horwitz LD, Zhai Z, Fujita M. Bucillamine Inhibits UVB-Induced MAPK Activation and Apoptosis in Human HaCaT Keratinocytes and SKH-1 Hairless Mouse Skin. Photochem Photobiol. 2020 Jul;96(4):870-876. doi: 10.1111/php.13228. Epub 2020 Apr 13. PubMed PMID: 32077107
• Mukherjee N, Amato CM, Skees J, Todd KJ, Lambert KA, Robinson WA, Van Gulick R, Weight RM, Dart CR, Tobin RP, McCarter MD, Fujita M, Norris DA, Shellman YG. Simultaneously Inhibiting BCL2 and MCL1 Is a Therapeutic Option for Patients with Advanced Melanoma. Cancers (Basel). 2020 Aug 5;12(8). doi: 10.3390/cancers12082182. PubMed PMID: 32764384
• Goldstein NB, Steel A, Barbulescu CC, Koster MI, Wright MJ, Jones KL, Gao B, Ward B, Woessner B, Trottier Z, Pakieser J, Hu J, Lambert KA, Shellman YG, Fujita M, Robinson WA, Roop DR, Norris DA, Birlea SA. MELANOCYTE PRECURSORS IN THE HAIR FOLLICLE BULGE OF REPIGMENTED VITILIGO SKIN ARE CONTROLLED BY RHO-GTPase, KCTD10 AND CTNNB1 SIGNALING. J Invest Dermatol. 2020 Aug 12;. doi: 10.1016/j.jid.2020.07.016. [Epub ahead of print] PubMed PMID: 32800877
• Zhai Z, Samson JM, Yamauchi T, Vaddi PK, Matsumoto Y, Dinarello CA, Ravindran Menon D, Fujita M: Inflammasome sensor NLRP1 confers acquired drug resistance to temozolomide in human melanoma. Cancers 2020 Sep 4;12(9). doi: 10.3390/cancers12092518. PubMed PMID: 32899791.
• Leachman SA, Hornyak TJ, Barsh G, Bastian BC, Brash DE, Cleaver JE, Cooper CD, D'Orazio JA, Fujita M, Holmen SL, Indra AK, Kraemer KH, Le Poole IC, Lo RS, Lund AW, Manga P, Pavan WJ, Setaluri V, Stemwedel CE, Kulesz-Martin MF. Melanoma to Vitiligo: The Melanocyte in Biology & Medicine-Joint Montagna Symposium on the Biology of Skin/PanAmerican Society for Pigment Cell Research Annual Meeting. J Invest Dermatol. 2020 Feb;140(2):269-274. PubMed PMID: 31348921
• Anwar A, Anwar H, Yamauchi T, Tseng R, Agarwal R, Horwitz LD, Zhai Z, Fujita M. Bucillamine Inhibits UVB-Induced MAPK Activation and Apoptosis in Human HaCaT Keratinocytes and SKH-1 Hairless Mouse Skin. Photochem Photobiol. 2020 Jul;96(4):870-876. PubMed PMID: 32077107
• Ravindran Menon D, Hammerlindl H, Torrano J, Schaider H, Fujita M. Epigenetics and metabolism at the crossroads of stress-induced plasticity, stemness and therapeutic resistance in cancer. Theranostics. 2020;10(14):6261-6277. PubMed PMID: 32483452
• Mukherjee N, Skees J, Todd KJ, West DA, Lambert KA, Robinson WA, Amato CM, Couts KL, Van Gulick R, MacBeth M, Nassar K, Tan AC, Zhai Z, Fujita M, Bagby SM, Dart CR, Lambert JR, Norris DA, Shellman YG. MCL1 inhibitors S63845/MIK665 plus Navitoclax synergistically kill difficult-to-treat melanoma cells. Cell Death Dis. 2020 Jun 8;11(6):443. PubMed PMID: 32513939
• Mukherjee N, Amato CM, Skees J, Todd KJ, Lambert KA, Robinson WA, Van Gulick R, Weight RM, Dart CR, Tobin RP, McCarter MD, Fujita M, Norris DA, Shellman YG. Simultaneously Inhibiting BCL2 and MCL1 Is a Therapeutic Option for Patients with Advanced Melanoma. Cancers (Basel). 2020 Aug 5;12(8). PubMed PMID: 32764384
• Zhai Z, Samson JM, Yamauchi T, Vaddi PK, Matsumoto Y, Dinarello CA, Ravindran Menon D, Fujita M. Inflammasome Sensor NLRP1 Confers Acquired Drug Resistance to Temozolomide in Human Melanoma. Cancers (Basel). 2020 Sep 4;12(9). PubMed PMID: 32899791
• de Graaf DM, Jaeger M, van den Munckhof ICL, Ter Horst R, Schraa K, Zwaag J, Kox M, Fujita M, Yamauchi T, Mercurio L, Madonna S, Rutten JHW, de Graaf J, Riksen NP, van de Veerdonk FL, Netea MG, Joosten LAB, Dinarello CA. Reduced concentrations of the B cell cytokine interleukin 38 are associated with cardiovascular disease risk in overweight subjects. Eur J Immunol. 2020 Oct 30. [Epub ahead of print] PubMed PMID: 33125159
• Samson JM, Ravindran Menon D, Vaddi PK, Kalani Williams N, Domenico J, Zhai Z, Backos DS, Fujita M. Computational Modeling of NLRP3 Identifies Enhanced ATP Binding and Multimerization in Cryopyrin-Associated Periodic Syndromes. Front Immunol. 2020;11:584364. PubMed PMID: 33329557
• Maghfour J, Rietcheck HR, Rundle CW, Runion TM, Jafri ZA, Dercon S, Lio P, Fernandez J, Fujita M, Dellavalle RP, Yardley H. An Observational Study of the Application of a Topical Cannabinoid Gel on Sensitive Dry Skin. J Drugs Dermatol. 2020 Dec 1;19(12):1204-1208. PubMed PMID: 33346512
• de Graaf DM, Jaeger M, van den Munckhof ICL, Ter Horst R, Schraa K, Zwaag J, Kox M, Fujita M, Yamauchi T, Mercurio L, Madonna S, Rutten JHW, de Graaf J, Riksen NP, van de Veerdonk FL, Netea MG, Joosten LAB, Dinarello CA. Reduced concentrations of the B cell cytokine interleukin 38 are associated with cardiovascular disease risk in overweight subjects. Eur J Immunol. 2021 Mar;51(3):662-671. PubMed PMID: 33125159
• Zhai Z, Vaddi PK, Samson JM, Takegami T, Fujita M. NLRP1 Functions Downstream of the MAPK/ERK Signaling via ATF4 and Contributes to Acquired Targeted Therapy Resistance in Human Metastatic Melanoma. Pharmaceuticals (Basel). 2020 Dec 30;14(1). PubMed PMID: 33396632
• Zhai Z, Vaddi PK, Samson JM, Takegami T, Fujita M. NLRP1 Functions Downstream of the MAPK/ERK Signaling via ATF4 and Contributes to Acquired Targeted Therapy Resistance in Human Metastatic Melanoma. Pharmaceuticals (Basel). 2021 14(1):23. PubMed PMID: 33396632
• J U C, Mohan MC, Prakash Kumar B. Attenuation of obesity related inflammation in RAW 264.7 macrophages and 3T3-L1 adipocytes by varanadi kashayam and identification of potential bioactive molecules by UHPLC-Q-Orbitrap HRMS. Arch Physiol Biochem. 2021 Feb 4;:1-15. [Epub ahead of print] PubMed PMID: 33539199
• Rundle CW, Rietcheck HR, Maghfour J, Dercon S, Fernandez J, Lio P, Dellavalle RP, Fujita M, Yardley H. Anti-inflammatory Effect of Cannabidiol and Palmitoylethanolamide Containing Topical Formulation on Skin in a 12-O-Tetradecanoylphorbol-13-Acetate-Induced Dermatitis Model in Mice. Dermatitis. 2021 Mar 4. [Epub ahead of print] PubMed PMID: 33654018
• Nassar KW, Hintzsche JD, Bagby SM, Espinoza V, Langouët-Astrié C, Amato CM, Chimed TS, Fujita M, Robinson W, Tan AC, Schweppe RE. Targeting CDK4/6 Represents a Therapeutic Vulnerability in Acquired BRAF/MEK Inhibitor-Resistant Melanoma. Mol Cancer Ther. 2021 Oct;20(10):2049-2060. PubMed PMID: 34376578
• Ravindran Menon D, Li Y, Yamauchi T, Osborne DG, Vaddi PK, Wempe MF, Zhai Z, Fujita M. EGCG Inhibits Tumor Growth in Melanoma by Targeting JAK-STAT Signaling and Its Downstream PD-L1/PD-L2-PD1 Axis in Tumors and Enhancing Cytotoxic T-Cell Responses. Pharmaceuticals (Basel). 2021 Oct 26;14(11). PubMed PMID: 34832863
• Mukherjee N, Dart CR, Amato CM, Honig-Frand A, Lambert JR, Lambert KA, Robinson WA, Tobin RP, McCarter MD, Couts KL, Fujita M, Norris DA, Shellman YG. Expression Differences in BCL2 Family Members between Uveal and Cutaneous Melanomas Account for Varying Sensitivity to BH3 Mimetics. J Invest Dermatol. 2021 Dec 20. [Epub ahead of print] PubMed PMID: 34942200
• Vorwald VM, Davis DM, Van Gulick RJ, Torphy RJ, Borgers JS, Klarquist J, Couts KL, Amato CM, Cogswell DT, Fujita M, Castleman MJ, Davis T, Lozupone C, Medina TM, Robinson WA, Gapin L, McCarter MD, Tobin RP. Circulating CD8( ) mucosal-associated invariant T cells correlate with improved treatment responses and overall survival in anti-PD-1-treated melanoma patients. Clin Transl Immunology. 2022;11(1):e1367. PubMed PMID: 35028137
• Batta N, Shangraw S, Nicklawsky A, Yamauchi T, Zhai Z, Ravindran Menon D, Gao D, Dellavalle RP, Fujita M: Global melanoma correlations with obesity, smoking, and alcohol consumption. JMIR Dermatol 4(2): e31275, 2021. doi: https://doi.org/10.2196/31275
• Rundle CW, Rietcheck HR, Maghfour J, Dercon S, Fernandez J, Lio P, Dellavalle RP, Fujita M, Yardley H. Anti-inflammatory Effect of Cannabidiol and Palmitoylethanolamide Containing Topical Formulation on Skin in a 12- O -Tetradecanoylphorbol-13-Acetate-Induced Dermatitis Model in Mice. Dermatitis. 2022 Jul-Aug 01;33(4):277-281. PubMed PMID: 33654018
• Mukherjee N, Dart CR, Amato CM, Honig-Frand A, Lambert JR, Lambert KA, Robinson WA, Tobin RP, McCarter MD, Couts KL, Fujita M, Norris DA, Shellman YG. Expression Differences in BCL2 Family Members between Uveal and Cutaneous Melanomas Account for Varying Sensitivity to BH3 Mimetics. J Invest Dermatol. 2022 Jul;142(7):1912-1922.e7. PubMed PMID: 34942200
• Li H, Zhang C, Bian L, Deng H, Blevins M, Han G, Fan B, Yang C, Zhao R, High W, Norris D, Fujita M, Wang XJ, Huang M. Inhibition of CtBP-Regulated Proinflammatory Gene Transcription Attenuates Psoriatic Skin Inflammation. J Invest Dermatol. 2022 Feb;142(2):390-401. PubMed PMID: 34293351
• Vorwald VM, Davis DM, Van Gulick RJ, Torphy RJ, Borgers JS, Klarquist J, Couts KL, Amato CM, Cogswell DT, Fujita M, Castleman MJ, Davis T, Lozupone C, Medina TM, Robinson WA, Gapin L, McCarter MD, Tobin RP. Circulating CD8( ) mucosal-associated invariant T cells correlate with improved treatment responses and overall survival in anti-PD-1-treated melanoma patients. Clin Transl Immunology. 2022;11(1):e1367. PubMed PMID: 35028137
• Li Y, Lofchy L, Wang G, Gaikwad H, Fujita M, Simberg D. PEGylated Liposomes Accumulate in the Areas Relevant to Skin Toxicities via Passive Extravasation across "Leaky" Endothelium. ACS Nano. 2022 Apr 26;16(4):6349-6358. PubMed PMID: 35343675
• Bhatia S, Nguyen D, Darragh LB, Van Court B, Sharma J, Knitz MW, Piper M, Bukkapatnam S, Gadwa J, Bickett TE, Bhuvane S, Corbo S, Wu B, Lee Y, Fujita M, Joshi M, Heasley LE, Ferris RL, Rodriguez O, Albanese C, Kapoor M, Pasquale EB, Karam SD. EphB4 and ephrinB2 act in opposition in the head and neck tumor microenvironment. Nat Commun. 2022 Jun 20;13(1):3535. PubMed PMID: 35725568
• Osborne DG, Domenico J, Fujita M. Expression of IL-37 Induces a Regulatory T-Cell-like Phenotype and Function in Jurkat Cells. Cells. 2022 Aug 18;11(16). PubMed PMID: 36010641
• Okamoto M, Liu W, Luo Y, Tanaka A, Cai X, Norris DA, Dinarello CA, Fujita M. Constitutively active inflammasome in human melanoma cells mediating autoinflammation via caspase-1 processing and secretion of interleukin-1beta. J Biol Chem. 2010 Feb 26;285(9):6477-88. PubMed PMID: 20038581
• Yamauchi T, Shangraw S, Zhai Z, Ravindran Menon D, Batta N, Dellavalle RP, Fujita M. Alcohol as a Non-UV Social-Environmental Risk Factor for Melanoma. Cancers (Basel). 2022 Oct 13;14(20). PubMed PMID: 36291794
• Luo Y, Dallaglio K, Chen Y, Robinson WA, Robinson SE, McCarter MD, Wang J, Gonzalez R, Thompson DC, Norris DA, Roop DR, Vasiliou V, Fujita M. ALDH1A isozymes are markers of human melanoma stem cells and potential therapeutic targets. Stem Cells. 2012 Oct;30(10):2100-13. PubMed PMID: 22887839
• Luo Y, Cai X, Liu S, Wang S, Nold-Petry CA, Nold MF, Bufler P, Norris D, Dinarello CA, Fujita M. Suppression of antigen-specific adaptive immunity by IL-37 via induction of tolerogenic dendritic cells. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2014 Oct 21;111(42):15178-83. PubMed PMID: 25294929
• Zhai Z, Yamauchi T, Shangraw S, Hou V, Matsumoto A, Fujita M: Ethanol metabolism and melanoma. Cancers (Basel) 15: 1258, 2023
• Zhai Z, Yamauchi T, Shangraw S, Hou V, Matsumoto A, Fujita M. Ethanol Metabolism and Melanoma. Cancers (Basel). 2023 Feb 16;15(4). PubMed PMID: 36831600
• Vaddi PK, Osborne DG, Nicklawsky A, Williams NK, Menon DR, Smith D, Mayer J, Reid A, Domenico J, Nguyen GH, Robinson WA, Ziman M, Gao D, Zhai Z, Fujita M. CTLA4 mRNA is downregulated by miR-155 in regulatory T cells, and reduced blood CTLA4 levels are associated with poor prognosis in metastatic melanoma patients. Front Immunol. 2023;14:1173035. PubMed PMID: 37197667
• Ravindran Menon D, Hammerlindl H, Gimenez G, Hammerlindl S, Zuegner E, Torrano J, Bordag N, Emran AA, Giam M, Denil S, Pavelka N, Tan AC, Sturm RA, Haass NK, Rancati G, Herlyn M, Magnes C, Eccles MR, Fujita M, Schaider H. H3K4me3 remodeling induced acquired resistance through O-GlcNAc transferase. Drug Resist Updat. 2023 Nov;71:100993. PubMed PMID: 37639774

Practice Locations

Rocky Mountain Regional Veterans Administration Medical Center
1700 Wheeling St
Aurora, CO 80045
303-399-8020

Hospital Affiliation

• University of Colorado Hospital

Specialty Information

Specialties

• Dermatology, Board Certification (2002)