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Member Information
Randy Q. Cron, MD, PhD
Assistant Professor, Department of Pediatrics
Office Phone: 215-590-1844
Office Fax: 215-590-1258
Email: rqcron@mail.med.upenn.edu
Website(s): http://www.med.upenn.edu/immun/Faculty/cron.html; http://www.chop.edu/consumer/pat_care_fam_serv/staff_profile_page.jsp?id=20750
Education: PhD 1990, University of Chicago ; MD 1991, UCLA
Keywords: HIV, CD4 T cell, Transcription, NFAT, C-maf, CD154, Lupus, Lymphocyte, Human
Research and/or Clinical Interests:
"Studying the role of CD4 T cell transcription factors in the regulation of the HIV-1 promoter/LTR activity, and in the dysregulation of CD154 in individuals with systemic lupus erythematosus."
Summary:
My lab's research interests are focused on the role of transcription factors in human immunodeficiency virus type-1 (HIV-1) and cytokine gene transcription in normal human adult peripheral blood and neonatal CD4 T cells. We are studying the role of nuclear factor of activated T cells (NFAT), octamer, and c-Maf transcriptional activator proteins in HIV-1 gene expression, and related cytokine gene expression, in neonates and adults. Regulating the transcriptional machinery of host CD4 T cells may lead to alternative approaches in the therapy of HIV-1 infection.
One clear difference between naïve neonatal and adult CD4 T cells is their ability to express CD154 (CD40-ligand). This appears to be controlled at the level of transcription, and the lack of NFAT1 proteins in the neonate may contribute to this deficiency in CD154 expression. A large part of our research effort is devoted to understanding the transcriptional regulation of the CD154 gene, particularly as it relates to decreased expression in the neonate and to increased expression in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). Understanding the transcriptional mechanisms, which contribute to increased and prolonged expression of CD154 on CD4 T cells from patients with SLE, could lead to novel approaches in the therapy of SLE.
Representative Publications:
Cron, R.Q., Bort, S.J., Wang, Y., Brunvand, M.W., Lewis, D.B. T cell priming enhances IL-4 gene expression by increasing NFAT. Journal of Immunology 162: 860-870, 1999.
Cron, R.Q., Bartz, S., Clausell, A., Bort, S.J., Klebanoff, S.J., Lewis, D.B. NFAT1 enhances HIV-1 gene expression in primary human CD4 T cells. Clinical Immunology 94: 179-191, 2000.
Cron, R.Q., Zhou, B., Brunvand, M.W., Lewis, D.B. Octamer proteins inhibit IL-4 gene transcription in normal human CD4 T cells. Genes and Immunity 2: 464-468, 2001.
Cron, R.Q. HIV-1, NFAT, and cyclosporin: immunosuppression for the immunosuppressed? DNA and Cell Biology 20: 761-767, 2001.
Schubert, L.A. , Cron, R.Q., Cleary, A.M., Brunner, M., Song, A., Lu, L.-S, Jullien, P., Krensky, A.M., Lewis, D.B. A T cell-specific enhancer of the human CD40 ligand gene. Journal of Biological Chemistry 277: 7386-7395, 2002.
Zhou, B., Cron, R.Q.*, Wu, G., Genin, A., Wang, Z., Liu, S., Robson, P., Baldwin , H.S. Regulation of the murine NFATc1 gene by NFATc2 . Journal of Biological Chemistry 277: 10704-10711, 2002 . (* - co-first author)
Hamilton , B.J., Genin, A., Cron, R.Q., Rigby, W.F.C. Delineation of a novel pathway that regulates CD154 (CD40 Ligand) expression. Molecular and Cellular Biology 23: 510-525, 2003 .
Cron, R.Q. CD154 transcriptional regulation in primary human CD4 T cells. Immunologic Research 27: 185-202, 2003.
Cron, R.Q. 2003. CD154 and lupus. Pediatric Rheumatology Online Journal 1: 67-76, 2003.
