Dr. Angel ZARAIN-HERZBERG

            Molecular Biology Laboratory
            Research Building
            School of Medicine
            National Autonomous University of Mexico
 
Apartado Postal 70-159
Mexico, D.F. 04510
Tel:           (525) 623-2258 y 623-2133
FAX:        (525) 616-2419
E-Mail:

angelz@laguna.fmedic.unam.mx
WWW:

Cardiovascular Sciences Home Page
Collaborators:
M. Sc. Georgina Alvarez
Gabriel Moreno
Research:
The main goal of the research projects in this laboratory is to elucidate the molecular mechanisms which regulate cardiac muscle gene expression in the normal and pathologic heart. The analysis of inducible gene expression has provided many insights into the molecular mechanisms of developmental, tissue-specific, hormonal and stress related transcriptional control. Cardiac muscle cells hypertrophy (enlarge) in heart disease as might develop from an overactive thyroid gland, or in response to a chronic increase in load such as hypertension and myocardial infarction.
  1. Transcriptional analysis of the cardiac SR Ca2+-ATPase gene. We are performing experiments designed to understand DNA-protein interactions of the Ca2+-ATPase genomic regulatory sequences with nuclear protein factors from cardiac muscle cells. Currently our efforts are directed at further characterizing the transcription factor responsive-sequences within the cardiac Ca2+-ATPase gene through protein-DNA binding assays and transactivation studies.
  2. Regulation of calsequestrin gene expression during myogenic differentiation. We have initiated the cloning of the rabbit cardiac SR calsequestrin gene and isolated several genomic clones encoding rabbit cardiac SR calsequestrin gene. The cloning of the cardiac SR calsequestrin gene allows the study of tissue-specific transcriptional gene regulation by the interaction of trans-acting nuclear protein-DNA binding factors with cis-acting DNA sequences during myogenic differentiation of skeletal and cardiac muscle cells.

    3. Some Publications

      1. Korczak, B., Zarain-Herzberg, A.,  Brandl, C.J., Ingles, J., Green, N.M. and MacLennan, D.H.  (1988)  Structure of the Rabbit Fast-Twitch Skeletal Muscle Ca2+- ATPase Gene.  J. Biol. Chem.  263: 4813-4819.

       2. Zarain-Herzberg, A., Fliegel, L. and MacLennan, D.H.  (1988) Structure of the Rabbit Fast-Twitch Skeletal Muscle Calsequestrin Gene.  J. Biol. Chem.  263: 4807-4812.

       3. Nagai, R., Zarain-Herzberg, A., Brandl, C.J., Fujii, J., Tada, M., MacLennan, D.H., Alpert, N.R. and Periasamy, M.  (1989)  Regulation of Myocardial Ca2+-ATPase and Phospholamban mRNA Expression in Response to Pressure Overload and Thyroid Hormone.  Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci., USA, 86: 2966-2970.

       4. Alpert, N.R., Blanchard, E.M., Mulieri, L.A., Nagai, R., Zarain-Herzberg, A. and  Periasamy, M. (1989) Genetic Control of Myocardial Calcium. Basic Res. Cardiol. 84 (1), 55-66.

       5. Lytton, J., Zarain-Herzberg, A., Periasamy, M. and MacLennan, D.H. (1989)  Molecular Cloning of the Mammalian Smooth Muscle Sarco(endo)plasmic Reticulum Ca2+- ATPase.  J. Biol. Chem.  264: 7059-7069.

      6. Zarain-Herzberg, A., MacLennan, D.H. and Periasamy, M.  (1990) Characterization of the Rabbit Sarco(endo)plasmic Reticulum Cardiac Ca2+- ATPase Gene.  J. Biol. Chem.  265: 4670-4677.

      7. Fujii, J., Zarain-Herzberg, A., Willard, H.F., Tada, M. and MacLennan, D.H.  (1991)  Structure of the Rabbit Phospholamban Gene, Cloning of the Human cDNA and Assignment of the Gene to Human Chromosome 6.  J. Biol. Chem.  266: 11669-11675.

      8. Zarain-Herzberg, A., Marques, J.,  Sukovich, D., and Periasamy, M. (1994)  Thyroid hormone receptor modulates the expression of the rabbit sarco(endo)plasmic reticulum Ca2+-ATPase gene.  J. Biol. Chem.  269: 1460-1467.

      10. Yano, K. and Zarain-Herzberg, A. (1994) Sarcoplasmic Reticulum Calsequestrins: Structural and Functional Properties. Mol. and Cell. Biochem. 135, 61-70.

      11. Zarain-Herzberg, A., Yano, K., Elimban, V. and Dhalla, N.S.  (1994)  Cardiac sarco(endo)plasmic Ca2+-ATPase mRNA and protein levels in diabetic rat heart.  Biochem. Biophys. Res. Comm.  203: 113-120.

      12.  Santiago-García, J., Mas-Oliva, J., and Zarain-Herzberg, A. (1996) Analysis of mRNA expression and cloning of a novel plasma membrane Ca2+-ATPase splice variant in human heart. Mol. Cell. Biochem. 155: 173-182.

      13.  Zarain-Herzberg, A., Afzal, N., Elimban, V. and Dhalla, N.S.  (1996)  Decreased Cardiac Sarcoplasmic Reticulum Ca2+-ATPase in Congestive Heart Failure due to Myocardial Infarction.  Mol. Cell. Biochem. 163/164: 285-290.

      14. Zarain-Herzberg, A., Rupp, H., Elimban, V., and Dhalla, N.S.  (1996) Modification of sarcoplasmic reticulum gene expression in pressure overload cardiac hypertrophy  by etomoxir. FASEB J. 10: 1303-1309.

      15. Shao, Q., Ren, B., Zarain-Herzberg, A., Ganguly, P.K. and Dhalla, N.S. (1999) Captopril treatment improves the sarcoplasmic reticular Ca2+-transport in heart failure due to myocardial infarction.  J. Mol. Cell. Cardiol. 31(9):1663-1672.

      16. Zarain-Herzberg, A., and Rupp, H. (1999) Transcriptional Modulators Targeted at Fuel Metabolism of hypertrophied Heart. American Journal of Cardiology 83 (12A) 31H-37H.
       
       
       
       
       

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    Last updated on May 18, 2001