Research

My primary research focus is the elucidation of mechanisms and cell signaling pathways that mediate host innate immune responses in autoimmune and infectious diseases. My work involves the study of the oral pathogen, Porphyromonas gingivalis (Pg). Pg is linked to periodontitis, as well as related systemic diseases such as cardiac failure and pre-term pregnancy. I am currently collaborating with Dr. Jenny Ting to study the function of a family of host response genes called NBD-LRR/NLR genes. I have developed algorithms and methodologies for RNA interference to assess the function of NLR genes in inflammatory processes including cell death, cytokine induction, and transcriptional activation. These studies help to identify signaling pathways in the inflammatory response to Pg.

Publications

• Invited Book Chapters

Moore, C. B., Holley-Guthrie, E. A., Huang, M., and Taxman, D. J. 2010 “Short hairpin RNA (shRNA): Design, delivery, and assessment of gene knockdown” In: RNA Therapeutics. Methods in Molecular Biology, 629:141-58

Taxman, D. J. 2009. “SiRNA and shRNA design” In: RNA Interference Methods for Plants and Animals. Doran, T. and Helliwell, C. (ed.), CABI, Oxfordshire, UK, Chapter 10, pp. 228-253

• Invited Reviews

Taxman, D. J., Barker, B, and Ting, J. P. 2011. Cross-regulation between non-inflammasome cytokines and the inflammasome. Curr Opin Immunol, In press

Taxman, D. J., Huang, M. T., and Ting, J. P. 2010. Inflammasome inhibition as a pathogenic stealth mechanism. Cell Host Microbe, 8:7-11

• Peer-Reviewed Manuscripts

Taxman, D. J., Holley-Guthrie, E. A., Huang, M. T. Moore, C. B., Bergstralh, D. T. Allen, I. C., Lei, Y. Gris, D., and Ting, J. P. 2011. The NLR adaptor ASC/PYCARD regulates DUSP10, MAP kinase (MAPK) and chemokine induction independent of the inflammasome. J Biol Chem, 286:19605-16

Gregory, S. M., Davis, B. K., West, J. A., Taxman, D. J. Matsuzawa, S., Reed, J. C., Ting, and J. P., Damania, B. 2011. Discovery of a viral NLR homolog that inhibits the inflammasome. Science, 331:330-4.

Davis, B. K., Roberts, R. A., Huang, M. T., Willingham, S. B., Conti, B. J. Brickey, W. J., Barker, B. R., Kwan, M., Taxman, D. J., Accavitti-Loper, M., A., Duncan, J. A., Ting, J. P. 2011. Cutting Edge: NLRC5-dependent activation of the inflammasome. J Immunol, 186:1333-7

Huang, M. T., Mortensen, B. L., Taxman, D. J., Craven, R., Taft-Benz, S., Keijek, T., Fuller, J. R., Davis, B. K., Allen, I. C., Brickey, W., Gris, D., Wen, H. T., Kawula, T. H., and Ting, J. P. 2010. Deletion of ripA alleviates suppression of the inflammasome and MAPK by Francisella tularensis. J Immunol, 185: 5476-85

Willingham S. B., Allen, I. C., Bergstralh, D. T., Brickey, W. J., Huang, M. T., Taxman, D. J., Duncan, J. A., and J.P. Ting. 2009. NLRP3 (NALP3, Cryopyrin) facilitates in vivo caspase-1 activation, necrosis, and HMGB1 release via inflammasome-dependent and -independent pathways. J Immunol, 183:2008-15

Allen, I. C., Scull, M. A. , Moore, C. B., Holl, E. K., McElvania-TeKippe, E., Taxman, D. J., Guthrie, E. H., Pickles, R. J., and Ting, J. P. 2009. The NLRP3 inflammasome mediates in vivo innate immunity to influenza A virus through recognition of viral RNA. Immunity, 30:556-65

Huang, M. T., Taxman, D. J., Holley-Guthrie, E. A., Moore, C. B., Willingham, S. B., Madden, V., Parsons, R. K., Featherstone, G. L., Arnold R. R., O'Connor, B. P., and Ting, J. P. 2009. Critical role of apoptotic speck protein containing a caspase recruitment domain (ASC) and NLRP3 in causing necrosis and ASC speck formation induced by Porphyromonas gingivalis in human cells. J Immunol, 182:2395-404

Attia, R. R., Gardner, L. A., Mahrous, E., Taxman, D. J., Legros, L., Rowe, S., Ting, J. P., Geller, A., and Kotb, M. 2008. Selective targeting of leukemic cell growth in vivo and in vitro using a gene silencing approach to diminish S-adenosylmethionine synthesis. J Biol Chem, 283:30788-95

Willingham, S. B., Bergstralh, D T., O'Connor, W., Morrison, A. C., Taxman, D. J., Duncan, J. A., Barnoy, S., Venkatesan, M. M., Flavell, R. A., Deshmukh, M., Hoffman, H. M., and Ting, J. P. 2007. Microbial pathogen-induced necrotic cell death mediated by the inflammasome components CIAS1/cryopyrin/NLRP3 and ASC. Cell Host Microbe, 2:147-59

Moore, C. B., Medina, M. A., van Deventer, H. W., O'Connor, B. P., Cameron, S., Taxman, D. J., Maile, R., Ting, J. P., and Cairns, B. A. 2007. Downregulation of immune signaling genes in patients with large surface burn injury. J Burn Care Res, 28:879-87

Lich, J. D., Williams, K. L., Moore, C. B., Arthur, J. C., Davis, B. K., Taxman, D. J., and Ting, J. P. 2007. Cutting Edge: Monarch-1 Suppresses Non-Canonical NF-{kappa}B Activation and p52-Dependent Chemokine Expression in Monocytes. J Immunol, 178:1256-60

Bergstralh, D. T., Conti, B. J., Moore, C. B., Brickey, W. J., Taxman, D. J., and Ting, J. P. 2007. Global functional analysis of nucleophosmin in Taxol response, cancer, chromatin regulation, and ribosomal DNA transcription. Exp Cell Res, 313:65-76

Taxman, D. J., Zhang, J., Champagne, C., Bergstralh, D. T., Iocca, H. A., Lich, J. D. and Ting, J. P. 2006. Cutting Edge: ASC mediates the induction of multiple cytokines by Porphyromonas gingivalis via caspase 1-dependent and independent pathways. J Immunol, 177:4252-6

Eun, S. Y., O’Connor, B. P., Wong, A. W., van Deventer, H. W., Taxman, D. J., Reed, W., Li, P., Blum, J. S., McKinnon, K. P., and Ting, J. P. 2006. Cutting Edge: Rho activation and actin polarization are dependent on plexin-A1 in dendritic cells. J Immunol, 177:4271-5

Taxman, D. J., Livingstone, L. R., Zhang, J., Conti, B. J., Iocca, H. A., Williams, K. L., Lich, J. D., Ting, J. P., and Reed, W. 2006. Criteria for effective design, construction, and gene knockdown by shRNA vectors. BMC Biotechnol, 6:7

Johnnidis, J. B., Venanzi, E. S., Taxman, D. J., Ting, J. P., Benoist, C. O., and Mathis, D. J. 2005. Chromosomal clustering of genes controlled by the aire transcription factor. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A, 102:7233-8.