Environmental Health Sciences Research Center

EHSRC Investigator Detail

COEC

Larry W. Oberley, Ph.D.
Professor of Radiation Oncology, Free Radical and Radiation Biology
Email: larry-oberley@uiowa.edu
Phone: (319) 335-8015
Lab Web Site: http://www.int-med.uiowa.edu/research/Inflammation/Inflammation.html
EHSRC Role(s):	Director, Oxidative Stress and Metabolism Research Cluster

The long range goal of Dr. Oberley's research is to understand the role of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and reactive nitrogen species (RNS) in the cause and treatment of cancer. Along with this goal, we seek to understand the prooxidants and antioxidants that govern the ROS/RNS.

The Oberley laboratory has been studying the role of oxygen free radicals and other ROS in the cause, prevention, and treatment of cancer for over thirty years. Cells are protected against the toxicity caused by ROS by a wide variety of antioxidant proteins such as the superoxide dismutases (SODs), catalases (CATs), and peroxidases, of which glutathione peroxidase (GPx) is the most prominent. These proteins are necessary for life in oxygen metabolizing cells, so it came as quite a surprise when it was found many years ago that cancer cells in general have low levels of these antioxidant proteins. Our laboratory has been trying to understand why tumor cells have altered antioxidant enzyme biochemistry and what use can be made of this difference.

Recent Publications

Zimmerman MC, Oberley LW, Flanagan SW. Mutant SOD1-induced neuronal toxicity is mediated by increased mitochondrial superoxide levels. J Neurochem. 2007 Aug;102(3):609-18. Epub 2007 Mar 23.
Menon SG, Sarsour EH, Kalen AL, Venkataraman S, Hitchler MJ, Domann FE, Oberley LW, Goswami PC. Superoxide signaling mediates N-acetyl-L-cysteine-induced G1 arrest: regulatory role of cyclin D1 and manganese superoxide dismutase. Cancer Res. 2007 Jul 1;67(13):6392-9.
Du J, Daniels DH, Asbury C, Venkataraman S, Liu J, Spitz DR, Oberley LW, Cullen JJ. Mitochondrial production of reactive oxygen species mediate dicumarol-induced cytotoxicity in cancer cells. J Biol Chem. 2006 Dec 8;281(49):37416-26. Epub 2006 Oct 13.
Weydert CJ, Waugh TA, Ritchie JM, Iyer KS, Smith JL, Li L, Spitz DR, Oberley LW. Overexpression of manganese or copper-zinc superoxide dismutase inhibits breast cancer growth. Free Radic Biol Med. 2006 Jul 15;41(2):226-37. Epub 2006 May 4.
Luo J, Li L, Zhang Y, Spitz DR, Buettner GR, Oberley LW, Domann FE. Inactivation of primary antioxidant enzymes in mouse keratinocytes by photodynamically generated singlet oxygen. Antioxid Redox Signal. 2006 Jul-Aug;8(7-8):1307-14.
Zhang Y, Smith BJ, Oberley LW. Enzymatic activity is necessary for the tumor-suppressive effects of MnSOD. Antioxid Redox Signal. 2006 Jul-Aug;8(7-8):1283-93.
Zhang HJ, Doctrow SR, Oberley LW, Kregel KC. Chronic antioxidant enzyme mimetic treatment differentially modulates hyperthermia-induced liver HSP70 expression with aging. J Appl Physiol. 2006 Apr;100(4):1385-91. Epub 2005 Oct 27.
Niu G, Anderson RD, Madsen MT, Graham MM, Oberley LW, Domann FE. Dual-expressing adenoviral vectors encoding the sodium iodide symporter for use in noninvasive radiological imaging of therapeutic gene transfer. Nucl Med Biol. 2006 Apr;33(3):391-8.
Lewis AM, Ough M, Du J, Tsao MS, Oberley LW, Cullen JJ. Targeting NAD(P)H:Quinone oxidoreductase (NQO1) in pancreatic cancer. Mol Carcinog. 2006 Mar 27; [Epub ahead of print]
Murley JS, Kataoka Y, Weydert CJ, Oberley LW, Grdina DJ. Delayed radioprotection by nuclear transcription factor kappaB -mediated induction of manganese superoxide dismutase in human microvascular endothelial cells after exposure to the free radical scavenger WR1065. Free Radic Biol Med. 2006 Mar 15;40(6):1004-16. Epub 2005 Nov 21.
Liu J, Du J, Zhang Y, Sun W, Smith BJ, Oberley LW, Cullen JJ. Suppression of the malignant phenotype in pancreatic cancer by overexpression of phospholipid hydroperoxide glutathione peroxidase. Hum Gene Ther. 2006 Jan;17(1):105-16.