Institution:  University of North Carolina School of Medicine

Website:  http://www.med.unc.edu/biochem/people/faculty/joint/wilson

Email:  emw@med.unc.edu

Voice:  (919) 966-5168

Publications

Our research focus is on mechanisms of action of the androgen receptor (AR), a ligand-dependent transcriptional regulatory protein that mediates the effects of testosterone and dihydrotestosterone. Studies seek to identify and characterize AR coregulatory proteins and their regulation by phosphorylation and the cell cycle. Areas of interest include male sex development, the androgen insensitivity syndrome, and AR action in the ovary, endometrium and prostate cancer. Melanoma antigen gene protein-11 (MAGE-11) was identified as an AR coregulatory protein that belongs to the MAGE gene family of cancer-germline antigens. The MAGE-11 gene is located on the human X chromosome and is exclusively expressed in human and nonhuman primates, providing a gain-of- function to AR. Mechanisms whereby MAGE-11 regulates AR transcriptional activity through its interaction with the AR NH2-terminal FXXLF motif and cell cycle regulatory proteins are being investigated. Our objective is to understand how AR regulates gene transcription and cell proliferation in the human male and female reproductive tracts. Keywords: androgen receptor, MAGE-11, male reproduction, female reproduction, prostate cancer, transcription regulation, FXXLF motifs