David W. Litchfield, PhD
BSc: McMaster University
PhD: University of Western Ontario
Postdoctoral Fellow: Howard Hughes Medical Institute &
Department of Pharmacology, Univ. of Washington, Seattle
Professor and Chair
Department of Biochemistry
Schulich School of Medicine and Dentistry
Phone: (519) 661-3074
Fax: (519) 661-3175
E-mail: litchfi@uwo.ca
Research Area:
Signal transduction events controlling cell proliferation and survival.
Research in our laboratory is directed towards elucidation of the molecular mechanisms that control the growth and survival of mammalian cells since defects in these mechanisms underlie many human diseases including cancer, atherosclerosis, neurological disorders and immune dysfunction. For our research, we employ a variety of complementary strategies involving molecular and cellular biology, structural biology, functional proteomics and bioinformatics. In particular, we are interested in understanding why cancer cells continue to divide in the absence of the appropriate cues and how they can acquire enhanced survival as compared to normal cells. Our studies have been primarily focused on components of regulatory signal transduction pathways, protein kinase CK2 and two of its novel partners (namely CKIP-1 and Pin1), that are frequently expressed at inappropriate levels in cancer cells and that promote leukemia and/or tumor formation when expressed at abnormal levels in mice. In addition to improving our understanding of the molecular basis of tumorigenesis, we hope that our studies will help fulfill the promise of protein kinases such as CK2 as potential targets for molecular targeted therapies. Our laboratory has established a number of collaborations locally and internationally to advance our studies. Furthermore, we have been involved in the establishment of a Functional Proteomics Facility to foster research within our research community in conjunction with other facilities comprising the London Regional Proteomics Centre.
Keywords: protein kinase, protein phosphorylation, cancer research, cell cycle, apoptosis, functional proteomics, signal transduction, protein kinase CK2, CKIP-1, Pin1
Representative Publications:
- D.W. Litchfield. Protein kinase CK2: structure, regulation and role in cellular decisions of life and death. Biochemical Journal 369: 1-15, 2003
- M.E.K. Olsten, D.A. Canton, C. Zhang, P.A. Walton and D.W. Litchfield. Characterization of interactions between protein kinase CK2 and CKIP-1: the PH domain of CKIP-1 is required for interactions and recruitment of CK2 to the plasma membrane. Journal of Biological Chemistry 279: 42114-42127, 2004
- D.W. Litchfield. Casein kinase II alpha 2. AfCS-Nature Molecule Pages, 2005. doi:10.1038/mp.a000108.01
- D.A. Canton, M.E.K. Olsten, K..Kim, A. Doherty-Kirby, G. Lajoie, J.A. Cooper and D.W. Litchfield. Inducible expression of CKIP-1 in human osteosarcoma cells demonstrates a role for CKIP-1 in the regulation of cell morphology, the actin cytoskeleton and interactions with actin capping proteins. Molecular and Cellular Biology 25: 3519-3534, 2005
- A.C. Bibby and D.W. Litchfield. Casein kinase II beta. AfCS-Nature Molecule Pages, 2005. doi:10.1038/mp.a000110.01
- D.A. Canton and D.W. Litchfield. The Shape of Things to Come: An Emerging Role for Protein Kinase CK2 in the Regulation of Cell Morphology and the Cytoskeleton. Cellular Signalling 18: 267-275, 2006
- C.D. Behrsin, C. J. Brandl, D.W. Litchfield, B.H. Shilton, and L.M. Wahl. Development of an unbiased statistical method for the analysis of unigenic evolution. BMC Bioinformatics 7: 150, 2006
- M.E.K. Olsten and D.W. Litchfield. Molecule Page for CK2alpha1. AfCS-Nature Molecule Pages, 2006. doi: 10:1038/mp.a000109.01
- M.E.K. Olsten and D.W. Litchfield. Molecule Page for CKIP-1. AfCS-Nature Molecule Pages, 2006. doi: 10:1038/mp.a003474.01
- D.A. Canton, M.E.K. Olsten, H. Niederstrasser, J.A. Cooper and D.W. Litchfield. The role of CKIP-1 in cell morphology depends on its interactions with actin-capping protein. Journal of Biological Chemistry 281: 36347-36359, 2006
- C.D. Behrsin, M.L. Bailey, K.S. Bateman, K.S. Hamilton, L.M. Wahl, C.J. Brandl, B.H. Shilton and D.W. Litchfield. New insights into the catalytic mechanism of the peptidyl-prolyl isomerase Pin1 revealed by unigenic evolution. Journal of Molecular Biology 365: 1143-1162, 2007
- A.C. French, B. Luscher, and D.W. Litchfield. Development of a stabilized form of the regulatory CK2beta subunit that inhibits cell proliferation. Journal of Biological Chemistry 282: 29667-29677, 2007
- J.S. Duncan and D.W. Litchfield. Too much of a good thing: the role of protein kinase CK2 in tumorigenesis and prospects for therapeutic inhibition of CK2. BBA: Proteins and Proteomics (published online August 30, 2007)
Complete list of publications from PUBMED.
