Tom Callis

  Cell and Developmental Biology

8336 MBRB, CB# 7126

Lab Phone: 919.843.3625

Lab Fax:

4th Year IVB Trainee
5th Year Graduate Student
 
Ph.D. Project Description:
The pursuit of my thesis work has been aimed at understanding fundamental mechanisms of transcriptional and post-transcriptional regulation of gene expression. In particular, I am interested in how transcription factors and microRNAs (miRNAs) coordinate cardiac gene expression during heart development and disease.
Principle Investigator:
Da-Zhi Wang
 
IVB Collaborator:
Dr. Scott Hammond
Project Description:
   Analyzing global microRNA expression in models of cardiac hypertrophy using a custom microRNA-microarray platform.
   
Rotations:
   Doug Cyr
  Patrick Brennwald
  Da-Zhi Wang
 
Familiar Techniques:
   Common molecular, biochemical, and cell culture methodologies, gene targeting and mouse colony management, luciferase reporter assays for promoter studies and microRNA-mediated repression, gel shifts, microRNA-northern blotting, southern blotting, cellular morphometric analysis, surface electrocardiograms, echocardiogram analysis.
 
Undergraduate degree:
   B.S. in Biology with Honors in the Major (2003) from University of Central Florida, Orlando, Florida
 
Awards/ Scholarships/
  American Heart Association Pre-doctoral Fellowship, August 2006-July 2008
Grants/ Fellowships:
   University of North Carolina Integrative Vascular Biology Pre-doctoral Fellowship, August 2005-July 2006
  American Cancer Society Undergraduate Research Fellowship, 2002
  University of Central Florida Honors in the Major Scholarship Award, 2002
 
Publications:
   1) Callis TE, Tatsuguchi M, Wang DZ. MicroRNAs and Their Emerging Role in Cardiac Hypertrophy. RNA Technologies in Cardiovascular Medicine and Research: Status and Challenges. 2008, In Press. Book Chapter.

2) Chen JF, Murchison EP, Tang R, Callis TE, Tatsuguchi M, Deng Z, Rojas M, Hammond SM, Schneider MD, Selzman CH, Meissner G, Patterson C, Hannon GJ, Wang DZ. Targeted deletion of Dicer in the heart leads to dilated cardiomyopathy and heart failure. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. 2008, 105:2111-2116.

3) Callis TE, Deng Z, Chen JF, Wang DZ. Muscling Through the microRNA World. Experimental Biology and Medicine. 2008, 233:131-138. Review.

4) Tang R, Zheng XL, Callis TE, Stansfield WE, He J, Baldwin AS, Wang DZ, Selzman CH. Myocardin inhibits cellular proliferation by inhibiting NF-kB(p65)-dependent cell cycle progression. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. 2008, In Press.

5) Tatsuguchi M, Seok HY, Callis TE, Thomson JM, Chen JF, Newman M, Rojas M, Hammond SM, Wang DZ. Expression of microRNAs is dynamically regulated during cardiomyocyte hypertrophy. Journal of Molecular and Cellular Cardiology. 2007, 42:1137-1141.

6) Callis TE, Chen JF, Wang DZ. MicroRNAs in skeletal and cardiac muscle development. DNA and Cell Biology. DNA Cell Biol. 2007, 4:219-25. Review.

7) Chen JF, Mandel EM, Thomson JM, Wu Q, Callis TE, Hammond SM, Conlon FL, Wang DZ. The role of microRNA-1 and -133 in skeletal muscle proliferation and differentiation. Nature Genetics. 2006, 38:228-33.

8) Callis TE, Cao D, Wang DZ. Bone morphogenetic protein (BMP) signaling modulates myocardin transactivation of cardiac genes. Circulation Research. 2005, 97:992-1000.

9) Mandel EM, Callis TE, Wang DZ, Conlon FL. Transcriptional mechanisms of congenital heart disease. Drug Discovery Today: Disease Mechanisms. 2005, 2:33-38. Review.