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James R. Stringer
James R. 
Stringer
, Ph.D.
Professor

1978-1980 Postdoctoral Fellow , Cold Spring Harbor Lab , Cold Spring Harbor , NY

1974-1978 Ph.DDept. Molec. Biology and Biochem , Univ. of California Irvine , Irvine , CA

1967-1971 A.B., Biology , San Diego State University , San Diego , CA

My lab has two research programs. In one, our goal is to better understand the frequency and causes of mutations that occur in cells of the body. To this end, we have developed several kinds of transgenic mice in which we can identify individual mutant cells. This system is being used in the following ways: (i) to determine the impact of malfunctions in natural defenses against mutation, (ii) to identify the target organ(s) and cell type(s) of mutagenic agents, (iii) to identify the nature of the mutations induced, and (iv) to compare the mutational load of a tissue to the probability of tumor formation in the same tissue.

My second research program studies Pneumocystis, which is a pathogenic fungus that poses a major threat to the health of immunocompromised patients, such as those suffering from AIDS. Treatment of Pneumocystis pneumonia is currently inadequate and improvement in this situation will require better understanding of the basic biology of this ill-understood microbe. We are approaching this problem by analyzing the P. carinii genome, with emphasis on a family of 100 genes that allow the microbe to change its surface.

Selected Publications:
  • Fischer, J.M., Stringer, J.R. (2008) Visualizing loss of heterozygosity in living mouse cells and tissues. Mutation Research 645: 1-8.
  • Fischer, J.M., Stringer, J.R. (2008) Mutation in aging mice occurs in diverse cell types that proliferate postmutation. Aging Cell 7: 667-680.
  • Keely, S.P., Linke, M.J., Cushion, M.T., Stringer, JR. (2007) Pneumocystis murina MSG gene family and the structure of the locus associated with its transcription. Fungal Genet Biol 44: 905-919.
  • Stringer, J.R. (2007) Antigenic variation in pneumocystis. Antigenic variation in pneumocystis. J Eukaryot.Microbiol 54:8-13.
  • Larson, J. S., Yin, M., Fischer, J. M., Stringer, S. L., and Stringer, J. R. (2006) Expression and loss of alleles in cultured mouse embryonic fibroblasts and stem cells carrying allelic fluorescent protein genes. BMC. Mol Biol., 7:36-46
  • Dei-Cas, E., Chabe, M., Moukhlis, R., Durand-Joly, I., Aliouat, E.M., Stringer, J.R., Cushion, M., Noel, C., de Hoog, G. S., Guillot, J., and Viscogliosi, E. (2006) Pneumocystis oryctolagi sp. nov., an uncultured fungus causing pneumonia in rabbits at weaning: review of current knowledge, and description of a new taxon on genotypic, phylogenetic and phenotypic bases. FEMS Microbiol Rev., 30:853-871.
  • Fischer, J.M., Robbins, S.B., Kannamkumarath, S.S., Al-Zoughool, M., Stringer, S.L., Talaska, G., Caruso, J.A., Stambrook, P.J. and Stringer, J.R. (2006) Exposure of mice to arsenic and/or benzo[a]pyrene does not increase the frequency of Aprt-deficient cells recovered from explanted skin of Aprt heterozygous mice. Environ. Mol. Mutagen. 47(5):334-44.
  • Redhead, S.A., Cushion, M.T., Frenkel, J.K. and Stringer, J.R. (2006) Pneumocystis and Trypanosoma cruzi: nomenclature and typifications. J. Eukatyot Microbiol. 53(1):2-11.
  • Gandhi, M., Medvedovic, M., Stringer, J.R. and Nikiforov, Y.E. (2006) Interphase chromosome folding determines spatial proximity of genes participating in carcinogenic RET/PTC rearrangements. Oncogene 25(16):2360-6.
  • Fischer, J.M., Robbins, S.B., Al-Zoughool, M., Kannamkumarath, S.S., Stringer, S.L., Larson, J.S., Caruso, J.A., Talaska, G., Stambrook, P.J. and Stringer, J.R. (2005) Co-mutagenic activity of arsenic and benzo[a]pyrene in mouse skin. Mutat. Res. 588(1):35-46.
  • Keely, S.P., Renauld, H., Wakefield, A.E., Cushion, M.T., Smulian, A.G., Fosker, N., Fraser, A., Harris, D., Murphy, L., Price, C., Quail, M.A., Seeger, K., Sharp, S., Tindal, C.J., Warren, T., Zuiderwijk, E., Barrell, B.G., Stringer, J.R. and Hall, N. (2005) Gene arrays at Pneumocystis carinii telomeres. Genetics 170(4):1589-600.
  • Stringer, J.R., Larson, J.S., Fischer, J.M., Medvedovic, M., Hersh, M.N., Boivin, G.P. and Stringer, S.L (2005) Modeling variation in tumors in vivo. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 102(7):2408-13.
  • Stringer, J. R., Larson, J. S., Fischer, J. M., and Stringer, S. L. (2004) Increased mutation in mice genetically predisposed to oxidative damage in the brain. Mutat.Res. 556, 127-134
  • Stringer, J. R. and Walzer, P. D. (2004) Pneumocystis-a genus long known, but with relationships only recently appreciated. In "Human Fungal Pathogens"(J. E. Domer and G. S. Kobayashi, Eds.), Vol. 12, pp. 167-190. Springer-Verlag, Berlin-Heidelberg
  • Schaffzin, J. K. and Stringer, J. R. (2004) Expression of the Pneumocystis carinii major surface glycoprotein epitope is correlated with linkage of the cognate gene to the upstream conserved sequence locus. Microbiology 150, 677-686
  • Larson, J. S., Stringer, S. L., and Stringer, J. R. (2004) Impact of mismatch repair deficiency on genomic stability in the maternal germline and during early embryonic development Mutat.Res. 556, 45-53
  • Keely, S. P., Fischer, J. M., Cushion, M. T., and Stringer, J. R. (2004) Phylogenetic identification of Pneumocystis murina sp. nov., a new species in laboratory mice Microbiology 150, 1153-1165
  • Ambrose, H. E., Keely, S. P., Aliouat, E. M., Dei-Cas, E., Wakefield, A. E., Miller, R. F., and Stringer, J. R. (2004) Expression and complexity of the PRT1 multigene family of Pneumocystis carinii Microbiology 150, 293-300

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