Johnathan M. Lee

, PhD

Associate Professor
Pathology and Molecular Medicine

University of Ottawa
613-562-5800 ext 8640
jlee@uottawa.ca

Currently accepting Graduate Students

Education and Professional Standing

• PhD, University of Toronto, 1992

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Interests

My lab is primarily interested in apoptosis and the regulation of mitosis. We also have a special interest in the involvement of these processes in breast and ovarian cancer. We are interested in three distinct molecules: protein elongation factor EEF1A-2, the p53 tumour suppressor and cyclin.

Specifically, my lab's ongoing research themes are:

• Role of EEF1A-2 in breast, ovarian and colorectal cancer. We have found that EEF1A-2 is genetically amplified and overexpressed in ~25% of breast and ovarian cancers. We have also found that EEF1A-2 enhances cell growth, tumorigenesis and inhibits apoptosis. Current work includes making transgenic mice that express EEF1A-2, using EEF1A-2 as a prognostic marker for ovarian and colorectal cancer, using an EEF1A-2-inactivating molecules as an anti-cancer agent, and using site-directed mutagenesis to identify the functional domains of EEF1A-2 necessary to inhibit apoptosis.
• Control of mitosis and apoptosis by cyclin B1. Cyclin B1 regulates mitosis in conjunction with the cdc2 kinase. We have found that cyclin B1 also controls apoptosis in some cell types. Current projects include identifying the mechanism by which cyclin B1 regulates mitosis-specific transcription and actin cytoskeletal rearrangement and characterizing the molecular pathway of cyclin B1-induced apoptosis.

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Selected Publications

• Porter LA, Cukier IH, Lee JM. Nuclear localization of cyclin B1 regulates DNA damage-induced apoptosis. Blood. 2003 Mar 1;101(5):1928-33. Epub 2002 Nov 07.
• Anand N, Murthy S, Anan G, Wernick M, Porter LA, Cukier IH, Collins C, Gray J, Diebold J, Demetrick D, Lee JM. (2002) Protein elongation factor EEF1A-2 involved in ovarian cancer. Nat Genet. 2002 Jul;31(3):301-5. Epub 2002 Jun 10.
• Porter LA, Lee JM. alpha-, beta-, and gamma-Tubulin polymerization in response to DNA damage. Exp Cell Res. 2001 Nov 1;270(2):151-8.
• Porter LA, Singh G, Lee JM. (2000) Abundance of cyclin B1 regulates gamma radiation-induced apoptosis. Blood. 95:2645-2650.
• Innocente S, Abrahamson JLA, Cogswell JP, Lee JM. (1999) p53 regulates a G2 checkpoint through cyclin B1. Proc Natl Acad Sci (USA). 96:2147-2152.