Progress Report on 2010 CHS Research Incentive Grant Funds

Summary Progress in my laboratory’s research efforts over the past year has been significant. As detailed below, results have led to two grant submissions, two poster presentations, and a peer reviewed publication. Funds from previous CHS Research Incentive Grant were used to complete experiments that will be included in the two manuscripts in preparation. Specifically, experiments designed to characterize the sheet assay was developed in the lab and is routinely utilized in most projects have been completed. These include quantitating cell proliferation using EdU incorporation and measurement of intranuclear distance after a variety cytokine and chemokine treatments (including CXCL12a, TNF, IL1, and MMP2). Work with CXCR4, CXCR7, and FGF transgenic and mutant zebrafish is commencing and appears to be promising. This work is ongoing and its completion will require additional experiments, using the funding requested here, before reaching the publication stage.

Two extramural grant proposals submitted National Institutes of Health, R15 AREA grant, Title: CXCR4 and Keratocyte Motility: Model of Acute vs. Chronic Inflammation. Grant Amount: $424,494. Submitted Oct. 25, 2010: Reviewed but Not Funded. National Science Foundation, Cellular Processes Division, Title: Control of Nucleocytoplasmic Shuttling of BAF53a. Grant Amount: $543,884. Submitted Jan. 12, 2011: Reviewed but Not Funded.

Peer reviewed publication accepted Tan B, Pascual A, de Beus A, Cooper K, Hull E. (2011) “Transforming Growth Factor-beta (TGF-) & Keratocyte Motility in 24-Hour Zebrafish Explant Cultures” Cell Biology International (in press)

Poster presented at national meeting Leyva K, Reyes J, Sumner A, McDonald T, Hull E. (2010) “Cytokine & MMP Expression in Zebrafish Keratocyte Motility” Poster presented at the 50th Annual American Society for Cell Biology Meeting

Poster presented at MWU Research Day Reyes J & Hull E. (2010) “The Role of TNF in Zebrafish Keratocyte Motility” Poster presented at the 9th Annual Kenneth A. Suarez Research Day

Two manuscripts in preparation Leyva K, McDonald T, Cooper K, Hull E. (2011) “Cell Morphology & Gene Expression Changes in Explant Culture” Manuscript in preparation. McDonald T, Sumner A, Reyes J, Cheng I-C, Pascual A, Hunt J, Cooper K, Leyva K, Hull E. (2011) “MMP Mediated Ectodomain Shedding Promotes Keratocyte Motility” Manuscript in preparation.