News

Congrats to Cammie & Shannon! Their paper ‘G protein-coupled estrogen receptor is not required for sex determination or ovary function in zebrafish‘ was accepted for publication in the journal Endocrinology.

G protein-coupled estrogen receptor is not required for sex determination or ovary function in zebrafish

An important negative result: We find that G protein-coupled estrogen receptor (GPER) is not required for sex determination or ovary development in zebrafish. While nuclear estrogen receptors are clearly involved in sex determination and gonad development, Cammie’s preprint suggests that non-canonical estrogen signaling is dispensable for sex determination and gonad development.

During a break from reviewing grants for an upcoming study section, the lab and I went to hear Dr. Jennifer Doudna give a seminar. We use CRISPR-Cas9 extensively to modify the zebrafish genome, so seeing one of the scientists who discovered CRISPR and adapted it for targeted DNA modification in non-bacterial species…that will be something to tell my genetically engineered grandchildren about.

Nuclear androgen receptor regulates testes organization and oocyte maturation in zebrafish. Congrats, Cammie!

Finally, after more than two years, submission to six journals, three editorial rejections and six rounds of peer-review, I am proud to report that Shannon’s first author paper, her magnum opus, the diamond in her PhD crown, was published in PLOS Genetics!

I would be proud no matter what, but I’m extra proud because Shannon had the guts to stick with this story, continue to add and refine data in the face of multiple rejections and aim for publication in a high impact journal. Meanwhile the grant proposals based on this project, both Shannon’s NRSA and my R01 (and the R01-A1, and the subsequent R01), were not even discussed, let alone funded.

Throughout the entire process, Shannon remained in high spirits. The rest of the lab came together to contribute supporting data that kicked the impact up a notch. We found two great collaborators with expertise in assays requested by the reviewers.

I hope you enjoy reading it as much as we enjoyed working on it.

Paige’s paper on estradiol uptake in zebrafish embryos and larvae was accepted to Toxicological Sciences. Congrats, Paige! Finally we have an answer to the perennial reviewer question: How much estrogen in fish water actually gets taken up by the zebrafish? The answer: not much.

Shannon’s review article, Crosstalk between nuclear and G protein-coupled estrogen receptors, was accepted for publication. Congrats, Shannon!

The lab’s latest manuscript is out for peer review. Before it is accepted for publication, you can read the preprint here. Congrats to Shannon and the lab for some great work! Let’s hope the reviewers agree.

For more info on preprints, click here for bioRxiv, the preprint server for biology.

We are thrilled to announce that our project, ‘Identifying T cell-specific glucocorticoid receptor agonists for the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis,’ was selected to receive funding by the UAB Rheumatic Diseases Core Center. This project has been near and dear to my heart for years, although relegated to the back burner due to lack of funding – too risky, as some funding agencies described it (we’re looking at you, NIH). Thanks UAB RDCC for taking a chance on us. We won’t disappoint.

The journal Zebrafish has just published a special issue on toxicology, edited by Dan together with our esteemed colleague Josh Gamse from Bristol-Myers Squibb (he doesn’t have a web page, pharmaceutical companies are super secretive). Check out the 108 pages of zebrafish toxicology excitement! And don’t miss getting your free print copy (wow, journals still publish print copies?) at the ZDM9 meeting in Singapore in October.