Pharmacology and Neuroscience
Dr. Peter J. Syapin
Professor of Pharmacology
Ph.D., 1977, University of California at Irvine
Effects on CNS Gene Expression and Regulation: Transcriptional Responses to Alcohol and StAR's Role in Neurosteroidogenesis.
One focus of this laboratory is the investigation of molecular and cellular mechanisms of adaptive and toxic changes in CNS glia and neurons due to acute and chronic alcohol exposure. Another focus is understanding the role of the Steroidogenic Acute Regulatory (StAR) protein in steroid production by brain tissue, and the effect of drugs on that process. To help further our understanding of the mode and consequences of altered gene expression by drug exposure, our laboratory utilizes several molecular techniques.
These include transfection of rodent and human cells with promoter-luciferase reporter gene constructs to measure transcription, electrophoretic mobility shift assays to study transcription factors, quantitative real-time PCR to measure mRNA expression and stability, and Western blotting for gene product determinations. Studies on the StAR protein use glial and neuronal primary cell cultures to examine StAR mRNA and protein expression, and high performance liquid chromatography with gas chromatography-mass spectrometry to quantify and identify de novo steroid synthesis. Other techniques used by our laboratory on additional projects include mapping changes in gene expression by the techniques of differential display of mRNA and DNA microarray analysis.
 |
| Alcohol and NO |
Link to: Syapin Lab Home Page
Representative Publications
King, S.R., Manna, P.R., Ishii, T., Syapin, P.J., Ginsberg, S.D., Wilson, K., Walsh, L.P., Parker, K.L., Stocco, D.M., Smith, R.G., and Lamb, D.J., Steroidogenic Acute Regulatory (StAR) protein mRNA and protein are expressed in neurons and glia in discrete regions of the brain. Journal of Neuroscience, In press, 2002.
Ren, L. and Syapin, P.J., Dual mechanisms for ethanol inhibition of Monocyte Chemotactic Protein-3 mRNA in activated glial cells. Journal of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics, vol. 303 pages 110-116, 2002.
Davis, R.L., Dertien, J. and Syapin, P.J., Ethanol-induced modulation of inducible nitric-oxide synthase activity in human A172 astrocytoma cells. Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Research. Vol. 26, pages 1414-1421, 2002.
Lado-Abeal, J., Clapper, J.A., Zhu, B.C., Hough, C.M., Syapin, P.J. and Norman, R.L. Hypoglycemia-induced suppression of luteinizing hormone (LH) secretion in intact female rhesus macaques: Role of vasopressin and endogenous opioids. Stress. vol. 5, pages 113-119, 2002.
Syapin, P.J., J.D. Militante, Garrett, D.K., and Ren, L.-Q., Cytokine-induced iNOS expression in C6 glial cells: Transcriptional inhibition by ethanol. Journal of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics, vol. 298, pages 744-752, 2001.
Ren, L.-Q., Garrett, D.K., Syapin, M., and Syapin, P.J., Differential fibronectin expression in activated C6 glial cells treated with ethanol. Molecular Pharmacology, vol. 58, pages 1303-1309, 2000.
Syapin, P.J., Rendon, A., Huron, D.R., and Militante, J.D., Effects of short chain alkanols on the inducible nitric oxide synthase in a glial cell line. British Journal of Pharmacology, vol. 126, pages 1253-1261, 1999.
Syapin, P.J., Alcohol and nitric oxide production by cells of the brain. Alcohol, vol. 16, pages 159-165, 1998.
Militante, J.D., Feinstein, D. L., and Syapin, P.J., Suppression by ethanol of inducible nitric oxide synthase expression in C6 glioma cells. Journal of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics, vol. 281, pages 558-565, 1997.
For further information contact Dr. Peter J. Syapin