Courses Taught
About
My research interests center on inflammation, the response to injury and infection,
and my goals are to elucidate the molecular mechanisms that regulate activity of inflammatory
mediators called eicosanoids. The current focus of this work involves analysis of
a gene designated CYP4F3 (cytochrome P450 4F3) that generates two distinct enzymes
by alternative splicing. One of these enzymes is expressed in neutrophils where it
inactivates the inflammatory mediator LTB4, and I am investigating the possibility
that it protects against inflammatory disease. The second enzyme is expressed in liver
and is induced by the cholesterol-lowering drugs called statins, although the consequences
for statin users are unknown.
My specific objectives are to identify regulatory sites in the gene that control tissue-specific
CYP4F3 transcription and splicing. We will use this information to search for interventions
that alter physiology by modifying CYP4F3 expression.
At a broader level, I am interested in exploring the functions of a CYP4F multi-gene
family that contribute to inflammation, lipid homeostasis, and drug metabolism.