1. What is your lab’s long-term/big-picture research goal?
We want to understand the process of cell division. Cells are machines, but they are immensely complicated compared to the machines made by humans. Unlike machines made by humans, cells can duplicate themselves. Most of the trillions of cell divisions that occur in a human occur flawlessly but, sometimes mistakes happen that can lead to diseases such as cancer and birth defects. In fact, most diseases are caused by malfunctions in cells. We are trying to map all the pathways involved in cell division, both in normal cells and in abnormal cells such as cancer cells. By understanding the differences, we may identify targets that can help us prevent and treat cancer and other diseases.
2. What is your training/scientific background?
I was an undergraduate biology major at the College of William and Mary where I started doing lab research studying cell movements. I graduated with a B.S. with highest honors in 1976. With a fellowship from the National Science Foundation I attended Princeton University where I studied how cells adhere to each other, an essential property that goes awry in cancer when cells move to improper locations. I received my Ph.D. in 1982. I moved to the University of Wisconsin for postdoctoral studies. There I began my analysis of cell division and discovered evidence overturning the conventional models then found in textbooks. My first academic position began in 1988 at the University of Virginia Medical School where I was first Assistant Professor then Associate Professor with tenure. I was then recruited to the University of Oklahoma Health Science Center as a Full Professor in 1999. In 2003, I moved to the Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation to become a department chair.
3. What is the goal of your OCASCR project?
Induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) hold tremendous potential for replacing diseased and aging tissues. However, their use requires that they be grown in plates in artificial cell culture for many generations. During this growth they may acquire changes in their DNA that may render them unusable or even dangerous for therapy. We are studying how iPSCs undergo one of the major DNA changes that affects them when grown in culture. Our evidence suggests that the mechanism underlying this change is something completely novel in the field of cell division.
4. How might your research impact diseases related to obesity or smoking?
Smoking and obesity are strong stresses that can affect the integrity of the DNA and cause defects in cell division. These defects can lead to disease of various kinds including cancer. By understanding these defects, we may identify targets that can help us prevent and treat diseases.
5. What’s your most critical piece of research equipment in your lab? Why?
Our most critical instruments are our microscopes. We have multiple kinds and have kept up to date with the latest advances. The microscopes allow us to visualize the process of cell division in various ways. For our current project, microscopy has allowed us to visualize the exact moment when cells acquire the DNA abnormality that occurs spontaneously during culturing of the iPSCs. Using this information we are working to determine the exact molecular mechanism so that we can figure out ways to prevent it from happening.
6. What’s your favorite scientific meeting to attend? Why?
My favorite meeting is the American Society for Cell Biology meeting. This meeting brings together scientists from all over the world who discuss the latest advancements in understanding the complexities of the biological machines we call cells.
7. Why did you decide to become a scientist?
All my life since I was a child I have been amazed and captivated by the diversity of living things. Some of that complexity occurs within the amazing process of cell division. If I could, I would like to understand and communicate to others how it is all possible.
8. Why do you consider yourself primarily a basic researcher?
Basic research seeks to understand the mechanisms that control the machines we call cells. You cannot fix a machine that is malfunctioning without knowing how it is supposed to work. Cells are immensely complex, which is why it will take many more decades before we understand them. My fascination with understanding the complexity of cells, particularly how they can make copies of themselves, drives my curiosity. It is no accident that most Nobel prizes in “medicine” are actually given for basic research because that is where the breakthroughs occur, where things are discovered that no one had suspected. While I am driven by the great reward of discovering things that no one has ever seen before, I understand that it is equally important that basic research must lead to improvement for humankind and the environment. To accomplish this, great scientists also work to apply these breakthroughs to the very important work in translational and applied medical research.
