Chad S. Hunter, Ph.D.

Professional Background

Chad S. Hunter is a native of Indiana, completing his undergraduate education at Franklin College of Indiana (B.A., 1997). After several years of working in the material science industry, he returned to school in 2002 to pursue graduate education at Purdue University in Indianapolis (at IUPUI). Under the guidance of his Ph.D. mentor, Dr. Simon Rhodes, Dr. Hunter studied pituitary gene regulation and transcription factors. Upon earning his Ph.D. in 2007, Dr. Hunter moved to Vanderbilt University in Nashville, TN to work under the guidance of Dr. Roland Stein on studies of the transcriptional control of pancreatic islet development and function. After earning competitive NIH F32 and K01 postdoctoral fellowships, in early 2014 Dr. Hunter moved to the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) to start his independent faculty career. At UAB, his lab continued studies of pancreatic islets and diabetes studies utilizing various molecular, biochemical, and animal modeling techniques. Within 11 years at UAB, Dr. Hunter became a Tenured Professor and was continuously funded since 2014 by various pilot awards, an American Diabetes Association Junior Faculty Development Award, several NIH F31 Fellowships for his graduate trainees, and multiple NIH R-level grants (R03, and R01s). In late 2024, Dr. Hunter joined the KUMC Department of Internal Medicine - Division of Endocrinology, Diabetes, and Clinical Pharmacology as a Professor and Vice Chair of Research Training. He holds a joint appointment in the Department of Cellular Biology and Physiology and is a member of the KU Diabetes Institute to further research and training on diabetes. In July 2025, Dr. Hunter was appointed as the Associate Vice Chancellor for Graduate - Postdoctoral Studies and Assessment.

• BA, Biology, Franklin College of Indiana, Franklin, IN
• PhD, Molecular Biology, Purdue University, Indianapolis, IN
• Post Doctoral Fellowship, Molecular Biology/Biochemistry/Diabetes, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, TN

• American Diabetes Association, Member, 2014 - Present
• The Endocrine Society, Member, 2014 - Present

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Research

Overview

Dr. Hunter’s basic research focuses on understanding how transcription factors and transcriptional co-regulators control gene expression decisions governing the embryonic development and adult function of tissues critical for glucose homeostasis, most notably pancreatic islet beta- and alpha-cells. Specifically, his lab examines interactions and function of a critical endocrine transcription factor, called Islet-1 (ISL1) and its interacting co-regulators, including a scaffolding factor called LDB1, a stabilizing factor called SSBP3, and (more recently) a histone modifying ubiquitin ligase called RNF20. Work in the Hunter lab spans in vitro cell line, in vivo mouse modeling and human cells and tissues, as well as multi-omics studies (including RNA- and ChIP-seq assays) to define transcriptional impacts of these factors (and more) on endocrine and metabolic function. Studies like these may inform future diabetes and obesity drug targets and/or therapies.

• Beta-cell responses to oxidative stress and Type 1 diabetes, NIH-NIDDK, Co-PI