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Marit Nilsen-Hamilton Professor - Iowa State University
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Education
Professional Appointments
Research Interests
The group discovered a unique fibroblast growth factor response element (FRE) in the mrp3 gene promoter. The FRE is also found in the promoters of many metalloproteinases that are important for cancer cell movement during metastasis. They have also found that the mrp/plf genes are expressed during wound healing and also in some fetal tissues. Mrp3 is the main mrp/plf that is expressed in the wound. Uterocalin is another secreted protein that is regulated by growth factors. It is an acute phase protein, produced by the liver, lungs and other epithelial tissues in response to stress such as occurs with infections. Uterocalin is also produced by the uterus around birth and in the mammary gland during involution after the young have stopped suckling. The protein is a lipocalin and may be involved in protection from infections by microbes during reproduction. A higher expression of this gene is also correlated with protection against breast cancer. The group is studying the protein's function and how the gene is regulated. To understand how growth-factor-induced genes are regulated and to identify the physiological functions of the protein products, Dr. Nilsen-Hamilton and her group are using biochemical, molecular, cellular, and developmental approaches, which include purifying the proteins, cloning the genes, determining their sequences, identifying the relevant regulatory elements, and identifying new transcriptional regulators. They are using cell cultures to express the proteins and also as "reporter" systems to study the activity of the regulatory elements of each gene. Studies of the regulation of gene activity also involve functional in vitro assays such as the electrophoretic mobility shift assay for transcription factors and in vivo studies of the levels of expression of the gene under different physiological conditions. In fighting almost any disease the ability to detect and treat it in the early stages is critical to a successful outcome. For most diseases there are changes in gene expression and subsequent protein products that could be used for early detection. However, disease-initiated changes often occur in the depths of our tissues. Therefore a challenge for developing new technology to fight disease is to find ways of non-invasive imaging (e.g. no biopsy or surgery) of the body’s status. Selected Publications
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