Research Interests
1) Using mice as a model, I am trying to understand the genetic and epigenetic mechanisms of the maturation of hepatic transporters and transcription factors during development. Hepatic transporters play important roles in the uptake and efflux of many chemicals in the body, including drugs, bile acids, phospholipids and so on. Abnormal expression of these transporters may disrupt the balance of the transporting system and cause various types of diseases. The ontogenic pattern of expression of liver transporters is programmed during development by various genetic and epigenic factors. These factors may include certain nuclear receptors that are activated by hormones and bile acids, histone modification patterns, DNA methylation, and microRNAs. My dissertation project focuses on how this mysterious “time clock” works to orchestrate the expression profiles of liver transporters.
2) I am also studying the effects of pregnancy and lactation on the expression of maternal hepatic transporters and drug-metabolizing enzymes. Pregnancy and lactation stress the mother’s body, which activates multiple pathways, and consequently changes the expression profile of several transporters and enzymes in the liver and GI tract. Such changes may have compensatory effects against the stress from pregnancy and lactation. It is also very interesting to me to study the gene regulation of these elements during such stress periods.
Contact Information
Yue Cui
Department of Pharmacology, Toxicology, and Therapeutics
The University of Kansas Medical Center
MS1018
3901 Rainbow Boulevard
Kansas City, KS 66160
Phone: (913) 588-9248
Fax: (913) 588-7501
E-Mail: ycui@kumc.edu
updated 11/13/08
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