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Winston
E. Thompson, Ph.D.
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EducationBA 1986, Biology, Lafayette College,
Easton, PA
M.S. 1988, Endocrinology, Rutgers The Sate University,
Camden, NJ Ph.D.
1993, Cell and Developmental Biology, Rutgers The State University
and University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey, New Brunswick,
New Jersey Certificate
in Embryology Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology Cooperative Reproductive Science Research Center RESEARCH
INTERESTS Ovarian Function, Female Infertility and Ovarian Cancer Biology The major focus of our laboratory
is to understand the antiproliferative/tumor suppressive properties
of Prohibitin, a gene located on human chromosome
17q21 close to the BRAC1 locus.
The prohibitin gene was first identified in resting, but
not in dividing mammalian cells.
It has been shown to have antiproliferative activity in eucaryotic
cells and has been associated functionally with processes such as
development, cell cycle regulation, cell senescence, differentiation,
and cellular immortalization. Despite its apparent ubiquitous nature, the
function of prohibitin within the mammalian system has not been
elucidated. Recent studies by the Principal Investigator
have demonstrated that prohibitin expression is associated with
cellular differentiation and apoptosis of granulosa cells during
ovarian folliculogenesis and in a conditionally immortalized granulosa
cell line, RGA-1. One of
the goals of our laboratory is to determine the functional significance
of prohibitin during granulosa cell development.
We hypothesize, therefore, that over-expression of prohibitin
will induce arrest in ovarian follicular growth and enhance cellular
differentiation. In addition, we are also studying the molecular
and cellular basis of human ovarian cancer by examining the functional
role of prohibitin. Clearly,
from a clinical perspective, an understanding of prohibitin gene
involvement in ovarian somatic cell growth and differentiation during
the normal physiological development of ovarian follicles, as well
as its role in the etio-pathogenesis of ovarian tumorigenesis is
important. This understanding
could potentially lead to development of novel strategies for diagnostic
or prognostic therapeutics in the treatment of ovarian dysfunction,
such as ovarian cancer, and in the design of a more rational basis
for drug development. Thompson
WE, Branch A, Whittaker JA, Lyn D, Zilberstein M, Mayo KE, Thomas
K. Characterization of prohibitin in a newly established conditionally
immortalized rat ovarian granulosa cell.
Endocrinology 142:4076-4085, 2001 Sutovsky P, Moreno R, Ramalho-Santos J, Bominko T, Thompson WE, Schatten G. A putative, ubiquitin-dependent mechanism for
the recognition and elimination of defective spermatozoa in mammalian
epididymis. Journal of
Cell Science 114:1665-1675, 2001. J.K. Stiles, J.C Meade, Z. Kucerova,
D. Lyn, W. Thompson, Z.
Zakeri and J. Whittaker. Trypanosoma
brucei infection induces apoptosis and up-regulates neuroleukin
expression in the cerebellum. Annual
of Tropical Medicine and Parasitology 95:797-810, 2001. Winston E. Thompson, Jacqueline Powell, Joseph A. Whittaker,
Rajagopala Sridaran, Kewlyn H. Thomas. Immunolocalization and expression of prohibitin, a mitochondrial
associated protein within the rat ovaries.
Anatomical Records 256:40-48 1999 Winston E.
Thompson, Jacqueline Powell, Kewlyn H. Thomas, and Joseph A. Whittaker.
Immunolocalization and expression of the steroidogenic acute
regulatory protein during the transitional stages of rat follicular
differentiation. Journal of Histochemistry and Cytochemistry
47: 769-776, 1999. W.E. Thompson, A. Sanbuissho, G. Y. Lee, and E. Anderson. Steroidogenic acute regulatory(StAR) protein
(p25) and prohibitin (p28) from cultured rat ovarian granulosa cells
(GC). Journal of Reproduction and Fertility 109:337-348, 1997. W. E. Thompson, T. M. Greco, and C. W. Holliday. Regualtion of hemolymph volume by uptake of sand capillary water
in desiccated fiddler crabs, Uca
pugilator and Uca pugnax. Comp. Biochem.
Physiol. 94A:531-538, 1989. |
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