Warren ZimmerAffiliations:
Research Interests: The research in my laboratory centers on understanding the complex mechanisms that regulate the expression of specific genes during development. We began looking at factors that influence the smooth muscle component of the gastrointestinal (GI) tract. It has been known for some time that intestinal smooth muscle cells are predominately derived from mesodermal precursors, however the factors regulating the smooth muscle myogenic pathway are not understood. From our work it is now recognized that a definite lineage of cells committed to the smooth muscle pathway in visceral muscle and that the terminal differentiation of these cells is dependent upon an up regulation in expression of the trans-factor Serum Response Factor (SRF). Further, we have shown that smooth muscle differentiation requires appropriate epithelial-mesenchyme signaling and are currently developing techniques and models to determine what signals are important for this process. Experiments are focused upon how SRF works with other activators, in particular mammalian homologs of the Drosophila bagpipe homeodomain factor Bapx1. These studies have expanded the emphasis of the lab to include prostate development and cancer, bone development, and spleen differentiation. We have developed methods – in vitro and in vivo; using both the culture of whole embryos and cells derived from knockouts and transgenic mice - to analyze these factors and determine the molecular mechanism(s) that allow them to activate appropriate developmental processes. Contact Information: Department of
System Biology and Translational Medicine |
Warren Zimmer |
