Dantzer Lab Members

Robert Dantzer, D.V.M., Ph.D.
Professor
Email: RDantzer@MDAnderson.org

Robert Dantzer employs both basic science and clinical research to investigate the mechanisms of inflammation-induced sickness and depression, with the objectives of understanding how the immune message propagates from the periphery to the brain and how brain cytokines can ultimately affect behavior. He incorporates neuroanatomy, cellular and molecular biology, and behavioral pharmacology approaches in wild-type and transgenic mice. In his studies of the mechanisms of the dissociation between sickness and depression, he discovered that the tryptophan-degrading enzyme indoleamine 2,3 dioxygenase plays a causal role in the transition from sickness to depression. Today, he continues his work in studies of the pathophysiology and treatment of cancer-related fatigue and depression.

Dantzer holds adjunct affiliations with Rice University and UTHealth Houston. He earned doctoral degrees in veterinary science and behavioral neuroscience from the University Paul Sabatier, Toulouse, France.

Dantzer is one of the original founders of the Neuroimmunology Laboratories as a new basic science effort alongside the existing clinical research within the department of Translational Neuroscience. The Neuroimmunology Labs have grown into five individual full-fledged labs within the department.

Lucy (Chinenye) Chidomere, B.S.
Research Assistant II

Chinenye Chidomere joined the Dantzer Lab in July 2022 after earning her bachelor’s degree in biomedical engineering from the University of Houston. Her research in the lab has focused on understanding the role of GDF15 and the cGAS–STING pathway in mediating cancer-related fatigue. More recently, she has expanded her work to investigate how tumor-innervating nerves influence behavioral health.

Outside the lab, Chidomere enjoys spending time with family and friends, watching movies and exploring Houston’s restaurants and cafés.

Chloe Graepel
Undergraduate Research Volunteer

Chloe is a sophomore at Rice Univeristy, where she is studying Spanish on the pre-med track. She is passionate about patient care and is excited to participate in research where she can learn more about the patient experience. In the Dantzer Lab, she works under the bench mentorship of Lucy Chidomere.

Lisa Abe, M.S.
Lisa was a research assistant in the Dantzer Lab for two years. In August 2025, she left the lab to pursue a Ph.D. in neuroscience at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center UTHealth Houston Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences.

Brandon Chelette, Ph.D.
Brandon was a postdoctoral fellow in the Dantzer Lab. He was the inaugural Cleeland Prize for Symptom Research winner in 2023, for his paper entitled, "The GDF15-GFRAL axis mediates chemotherapy-induced fatigue in mice." In November 2024, he transitioned to a staff scientist position at Baylor College of Medicine.