Christopher Brower, Ph.D.

Contact

cbrower@twu.edu
940-898-2706
SRC 304L

Biography

Dr. Brower received his PhD in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology from the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center. As a graduate student he studied the regulation of gene expression in the lab of Joan and Ron Conaway. He then was then a post-doc in Alex Varshavsky's lab in the division of Biology and Biological Engineering at the California Institute of Technology. There he learned genetic engineering.

 

As a scientist at Caltech, Dr. Brower generated a number of genetically modified mouse models to study the role of protein arginylation in cellular protein breakdown. He discovered that the loss of protein arginylation in mice causes a dramatic loss of fat and resistance to diet-induced obesity. He also discovered that arginylation was important for the removal of a number of pathogenic forms of proteins known to be associated with neurodegenerative disorders such as Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis, and frontal temporal dementia.

 

Dr. Brower is continuing this research at TWU. His laboratory is currently funded by the National Institutes of Health to examine the role of protein quality control in the toxicity of proteins associated with neurodegeneration.

Brower Lab website

Complete list of published work in MyBibliography

Education

Ph.D., Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, Oklahoma City, OK
M.S., Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, Oklahoma City, OK
B.S., Cellular Biology, Northeastern State University, Tahlequah, OK

Research Interests

Protein Degradation; Ubiquitin Proteasome System; Autophagy; Gene Expression; Neurodegeneration; Metabolism; Liquid-Liquid Phase Separation

Latest Articles

Both Acute and Consecutive Days of Formoterol Stimulation Influence Myogenic, Mitochondrial, and myomiR Gene Expression in Human Skeletal Muscle Cells
Muscles (2023)
Ryan A Gordon, Emily L Zumbro, Gena D Guerin, Matthew L Sokoloski, Vic Ben-Ezra

BAG6 prevents the aggregation of neurodegeneration-associated fragments of TDP43
iScience (2022)
Yasar Arfat T Kasu, Akshaya Arva, Jess Johnson, Christin Sajan, Jasmin Manzano

The Ligand of Ate1 is intrinsically disordered and participates in nucleolar phase separation regulated by Jumonji Domain Containing 6
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (2021)
Akshaya Arva, Yasar Arfat T Kasu, Jennifer Duncan, Mosleh A Alkhatatbeh, Christopher S Brower

A fluorescence-based reporter of Arginyltransferase 1 (ATE1)
Texas Journal of Microscopy (2020)
Yasar Arfat T Kasu, Rinki Dasgupta, Christopher S Brower

Beta-amyloid induces apoptosis of neuronal cells by inhibition of the Arg/N-end rule pathway proteolytic activity
Aging (2019)
Olga I Kechko, Irina Yu Petrushanko, Christopher S Brower, Alexei A Adzhubei, Alexey A Moskalev

The N-termini of TAR DNA-binding protein-43 (TDP43) C-terminal fragments influence degradation, aggregation propensity and morphology
Molecular and Cellular Biology (2018)
Yasar AT Kasu, Samrawit Alemu, Angela Lamari, Nicole Loew, Christopher S Brower

Analyzing N-terminal Arginylation Through the Use of Peptide Arrays and Degradation Assays
Journal of Biological Chemistry (2016)
Brandon Wadas, Konstantin I Piatkov, Christopher S Brower, Alexander Varshavsky

Degradation of the Separase-cleaved Rec8, a Meiotic Cohesin Subunit, by the N-end Rule Pathway
Journal of Biological Chemistry (2016)
Y J Liu, C Liu, Brandan Wadas, Christopher S Brower, Z H Song

Current Projects

Understanding the role of TDP43 in neurodegeneration and its degradation by the N-end rule pathway – Funded by the NIH-National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke. Brower C.S., Piatkov K., and Varshavsky A. (2013) Neurodegeneration-Associated Protein Fragments As Short-Lived Substrates of the N-End Rule Pathway. Molecular Cell, 50:161-71. Kasu YAT, Alemu S, Lamari A, Loew N, Brower CS. (2018) The N-termini of TAR DNA-binding protein-43 (TDP43) C-terminal fragments influence degradation, aggregation propensity and morphology. Mol Cell Biol doi:10.1128/mcb.00243-18. Understanding the role of ATE1 in fat and energy metabolism – Funded by TWU Research Enhancement Program. Brower C.S. and Varshavsky A. (2009) Ablation of arginylation in the mouse N-end rule pathway: loss of fat, higher metabolic rate, damaged spermatogenesis, and neurological perturbations. PLoS One. 4:e7757.

Complete list of published work in MyBibliography

Externally Funded Projects

Diversity Research Supplement
GOV-National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS) | $72,067.00 | 2022
Role: Principal Investigator

Evaluating Protein Quality Control in the Toxicity of TDP43 Fragments Associated with ALS and FTD Year 1 of 3
GOV-National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS) | $385,343.00 | 2021
Role: Principal Investigator

Understanding the Role of TDP43 in Neurodegeneration and Its Degradation by the N-end Rule Pathway
GOV-National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS) | $372,857.00 | 2016
Role: Principal Investigator

Internally Funded Projects

Generation of an ATE1 reporter mouse to establish global view of protein arginylation and to identify modulators.
GOV-Texas Woman's University | $15,000.00 | 2023
Research Grant

Teaching and Research Grant for Equipment and Technology (TARGET)
GOV-Texas Woman's University | $71,995.00 | 2023
Research Grant

Mentor - Chancellors' Research Program
Chancellors' Research Program | $3,000.00 | 2021
Research Grant

Liat1-mediated biomolecular condensation in the nucleolus
GOV-Texas Woman's University | $9,996.00 | 2020
Research Grant

Mentor - Chancellors' Research Program
Chancellor's Research Fellowship | $3,000.00 | 2019
Research Grant

Mentor - Chancellors' Research Program
$3,000.00 | 2018
Research Grant

Understanding the role of ATE1 in fat and energy metabolism
TWU, Research Enhancement Program | $10,000.00 | 2018
Research Grant

The role of ATE1 in fat and energy metabolism
$10,000.00 | 2016
Research Grant

TWU Chancellors' Research Fellow
$5,000.00 | 2015
Research Grant

TDP43 toxicity and its degradation by the N-end rule pathway to prevent neurodegeneration
$10,000.00 | 2015
Research Grant