Luke Engelking, M.D., Ph.D.

Internal Medicine - Digestive and Liver Diseases
Inherited GI Cancer Syndromes
Polyposis Syndromes

Biography

Luke Engelking, M.D., Ph.D., is an Associate Professor of Internal Medicine at UT Southwestern Medical Center, and a member of its Division of Digestive and Liver Diseases. His clinical interests include the treatment of patients with either known or suspected inherited disorders of polyposis and colorectal cancer, including Lynch syndrome, Familial Adenomatous Polyposis syndrome, Peutz-Jeghers syndrome, Juvenile Polyposis syndrome, and Cowden syndrome.

Originally from Houston, Dr. Engelking received bachelor's degrees in biochemistry and genetics from Texas A&M University. He then completed his medical degree and a doctoral degree in biomedical science at UT Southwestern, where he studied cholesterol and fat metabolism under the tutelage of Michael Brown, M.D., and Joseph Goldstein, M.D. He obtained internal medicine residency training at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston, and returned to UT Southwestern for clinical and research fellowships in gastroenterology.

As a postdoctoral researcher, he studied lipid synthesis in the intestine, which is recognized as a key metabolic organ at the center of nutrient homeostasis. He demonstrated that Sterol Response Element-Binding Proteins (SREBPs) are major players in the regulation of intestinal lipid synthesis.

A Diplomate of the American Board of Internal Medicine in both internal medicine and gastroenterology, Dr. Engelking joined the UT Southwestern faculty in 2014.

After establishing his research laboratory, he began investigating the molecular underlying lipid regulation of intestinal epithelial homeostasis and tumorgenesis, supported by a K08 award (2014-2020) and currently by an R01 award (2019-2024) from the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases, as well as an individual investigator research award (R01 equivalent) grant from Cancer Prevention & Research Institute of Texas (CPRIT). His ultimate goals are to discover new lipid-derived oncometabolites that may be targeted in the fight against colon cancer, and to clarify the links between dietary lipids and intestinal cancers.

Dr. Engelking is an active member of the American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, and the American Gastroenterological Association.

Education & Training

Fellowship - UT Southwestern Medical Center (2010-2014), Gastroenterology
Residency - Massachusetts General Hospital (2007-2010), Internal Medicine
Medical School - UT Southwestern Medical School (2000-2007)

Professional Associations & Affiliations

American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology (2014)
American Gastroenterological Association (2010), Member

Honors & Awards

Disease-Oriented Clinical Scholar Award, UT Southwestern 2015
Research Scholar in Liver Disease, North American Gilead Sciences 2014
Distinguished Researcher's Award,UT Southwestern President's Research Council 2014
Alpha Omega Alpha, UT Southwestern Medical School 2007
University Honors, Texas A&M University 2000

Books & Publications

Publications
- Adipocyte iron levels impinge on a fat-gut crosstalk to regulate intestinal lipid absorption and mediate protection from obesity.
  Zhang Z, Funcke JB, Zi Z, Zhao S, Straub LG, Zhu Y, Zhu Q, Crewe C, An YA, Chen S, Li N, Wang MY, Ghaben AL, Lee C, Gautron L, Engelking LJ, Raj P, Deng Y, Gordillo R, Kusminski CM, Scherer PE, Cell metabolism 2021 Jun
- Interplay between ChREBP and SREBP-1c Coordinates Postprandial Glycolysis and Lipogenesis in Livers of Mice.
  Linden AG, Li S, Choi HY, Fang F, Fukasawa M, Uyeda K, Hammer RE, Horton JD, Engelking LJ, Liang G Journal of lipid research 2018 Jan
- Developmental and extrahepatic physiological functions of SREBP pathway genes in mice.
  Engelking LJ, Cantoria MJ, Xu Y, Liang G Seminars in cell & developmental biology 2017 Jul
- Cholesterol auxotrophy and intolerance to ezetimibe in mice with SREBP-2 deficiency in the intestine.
  Rong S, McDonald J, Engelking L Journal of lipid research 2017 Jun
- Hypoxia-inducible factor-1a activates insig-2 transcription for degradation of HMG CoA reductase in the liver.
  Hwang S, Nguyen AD, Jo Y, Engelking LJ, Brugarolas J, DeBose-Boyd RA The Journal of biological chemistry 2017 Apr
- Scap is required for sterol synthesis and crypt growth in intestinal mucosa.
  McFarlane MR, Cantoria MJ, Linden AG, January BA, Liang G, Engelking LJ Journal of lipid research 2015 Apr
- Insig proteins mediate feedback inhibition of cholesterol synthesis in the intestine.
  McFarlane MR, Liang G, Engelking LJ The Journal of biological chemistry 2014 Jan 289 4 2148-56
- Blockade of cholesterol absorption by ezetimibe reveals a complex homeostatic network in enterocytes.
  Engelking LJ, McFarlane MR, Li CK, Liang G Journal of lipid research 2012 Jul 53 7 1359-68
- Severe facial clefting in Insig-deficient mouse embryos caused by sterol accumulation and reversed by lovastatin.
  Engelking LJ, Evers BM, Richardson JA, Goldstein JL, Brown MS, Liang G The Journal of clinical investigation 2006 Sep 116 9 2356-65
- Schoenheimer effect explained--feedback regulation of cholesterol synthesis in mice mediated by Insig proteins.
  Engelking LJ, Liang G, Hammer RE, Takaishi K, Kuriyama H, Evers BM, Li WP, Horton JD, Goldstein JL, Brown MS The Journal of clinical investigation 2005 Sep 115 9 2489-98
- Compensatory increase in fatty acid synthesis in adipose tissue of mice with conditional deficiency of SCAP in liver.
  Kuriyama H, Liang G, Engelking LJ, Horton JD, Goldstein JL, Brown MS Cell metabolism 2005 Jan 1 1 41-51
- Overexpression of Insig-1 in the livers of transgenic mice inhibits SREBP processing and reduces insulin-stimulated lipogenesis.
  Engelking LJ, Kuriyama H, Hammer RE, Horton JD, Brown MS, Goldstein JL, Liang G The Journal of clinical investigation 2004 Apr 113 8 1168-75
- Identification of BV/ODV-C42, an Autographa californica nucleopolyhedrovirus orf101-encoded structural protein detected in infected-cell complexes with ODV-EC27 and p78/83.
  Braunagel SC, Guidry PA, Rosas-Acosta G, Engelking L, Summers MD Journal of virology 2001 Dec 75 24 12331-8

Research

SREBP, Scap and Insig Proteins
Enteroendocrine Cell Biology
Cholesterol and Fat Metabolism

Clinical Focus

Inherited GI Cancer Syndromes
Polyposis Syndromes
Familial Adenomatous Polyposis Syndrome
Lynch Syndrome
Rare and Genetic Disorders of the GI Tract