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More about Dr. Dresser:
Dr. Dresser 101 (for non-scientists)
Dr. Dresser's CV in brief
Publications
Cell Cycle and Cancer Biology Research Program
Dr. Dresser In The News
OMRF scientists pinpoint body's system for preventing chromosomal defects
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Michael E. Dresser, M.D./Ph.D.
Associate Member, Cell Cycle and Cancer Biology Research Program
Adjunct Associate Professor, Department of Cell Biology, University of Oklahoma
Health Sciences Center
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Research Interests
Chromosome abnormalities that arise during the development of sperm and
eggs can cause infertility, birth defects and increased predisposition
to cancer. To prevent these abnormalities, chromosomes of each pair must
recognize one another, move together, align closely, exchange parts and
then segregate away from one another during meiosis to form the reduced
genome of sperm and eggs, thus preparing the genome for the next
generation. My laboratory uses the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae to
identify the molecular mechanisms that carry out these activities.
Our major focus at present is to understand the contribution of
telomeres to these processes. Telomeres are structures that stabilize
the ends of chromosomes and play roles in aging and prevention of
cancer. During meiosis, telomeres draw all chromosomes into a single
cluster that persists for a short time, just when chromosome pairs are
becoming closely aligned. This event occurs in humans, plants,
amphibians, yeast and other organisms, but its purpose remains
unexplained. Recently, we have discovered that telomeres tug chromosomes
rapidly around the nuclear envelope throughout meiosis, and our analyses
indicate that by understanding these movements we will gain insights
into currently unknown, fundamental cellular mechanisms that preserve
the genome.
We first discovered that Ndj1p is a telomere protein which appears only
in meiosis. When Ndj1p is defective, telomeres fail to form the cluster,
the movements are slowed, chromosomes are slow to align and chromosomes
missegregate, leading to aneuploidy of the sort that causes infertility
and birth defects. Using an approach that combines genetics, molecular
genetics and high-resolution fluorescence and electron microscopy, we
have identified new proteins required to make the cluster, including
Mps3p and Csm4p which also localize to telomeres in meiosis. Mps3p is a
member of a family of proteins implicated in chromosome and nucleus
positioning in various organisms, supporting the idea that the molecular
mechanisms we are uncovering are fundamental and widespread.
We have developed and patented new
methods of microscopy to track movements in live cells and have found
that the telomere-promoted movements are more important than telomere
clustering in generating proper chromosome pairing and segregation,
providing a new perspective on how the genome is preserved for delivery
across generations.
Joined OMRF Scientific Staff in 1989.
Mailing Address
Cell Cycle and Cancer Biology Research Program, MS 48
Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation
825 N.E. 13th Street
Oklahoma City, Oklahoma 73104
Contact Information
Phone: (405) 271-7682
Fax: (405) 271-7312
E-mail:
Michael-Dresser@omrf.org
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