Maiyon Park

Maiyon Park
Assistant Professor of Biochemistry and Microbiology
Joan C. Edwards School of Medicine
Marshall University
Huntington, WV 25704

Contact Information
parkm@marshall.edu
Office phone: 304-696-3680
Lab phone:304-696-7033
Fax: 304-696-7253

Office Address
Medical Education Building G10 (lab)
1542 Spring Valley Dr.
Huntington WV 25704

Research Description

My lab explores the mechanisms underlying convergent-extension movements and cancer development using zebrafish, mouse, human tissue, and tissue culture cells. For convergent-extension movements, we focus on Planar Cell Polarity (PCP), one of the Wnt signaling pathways. For cancer research, we focuses on the p53 tumor suppressor and Retinoic Acid mediated apoptotic signaling pathway.

Chmp1, a putative tumor suppressor in pancreatic tumors
Chmp1 (Chromatin Modifying Protein) is identified as a binding partner of Strabismus in yeast two-hybrid screen. Chmp1 induces hyperplasia in zebrafish when it is mis-regulated. Chmp1 mRNA is down regulated in pancreatic tumors and Chmp1 protein is absent from the acinar cells of pancreatic tumors, suggesting that Chmp1 is a tumor suppressor. SiRNA mediated knock-down of Chmp1 renders normal fibroblast cells to form colonies, which is characteristic of tumor cells. Chmp1 over-expression inhibits the growth of pancreatic cell in part by activating p53 through Retinoic Acid Signaling Pathway. We are going to dissect the signaling pathway of Chmp1 by employing Chmp1 knockout mice, and by identifying proteins interacting with Chmp1. We will employ affinity chromatography, yeast-two hybrid system, and DNA microarray to identify protein network of the signaling pathway underlying pancreatic cancer development.

Planar Cell Polarity (PCP) Pathway function in vertebrate convergent-extension movements
My lab studies the signaling pathway(s) of convergent-extension movements using zebrafish. Zebrafish is an excellent model system to study development since the transparent embryos form most organs in a day. We characterize the functions of molecules by injecting either mRNA (for gain of function) or anti-sense Morpholino (for loss of function) into zebrafish embryos. The phenotype will be determined by mRNA in situ hybridization, Western Blot analysis and Immunohistochmical analysis.