Christopher L. Pin
Professor
PH.D. University of Western Ontario
B.Sc. University of Western Ontario
Office: Victoria Research Labs, Room A5-134
p. 519.685.8500 x. 53073
f. 519.685.8186
e. cpin@uwo.ca
See Publications by Christopher Pin on PubMed
The transcriptional networks for designating endocrine pancreatic tissue are well established. However, the transcriptional regulation within the exocrine pancreas still remains largely unknown. To understand the regulation of genes within this compartment of the pancreas, we have been studying Mist1, an exocrine-specific basic helix-loop-helix transcription factor. Targeted ablation of the Mist1 gene in mice (Mist1KO) indicates that Mist1 is necessary for exocrine cell maturation and stability as Mist1KO acinar cells exhibit significant disorganization and deficits in secretagogue signalling. Deletion of Mist1 also results in an increased susceptibility to pancreatic disease, most notably acute and chronic pancreatitis. The gene expression profile of Mist1KO mice was assessed by microarray analysis before and after initiation of acute pancreatitis, and compared to response observed in normal wild type mice. This analysis has allowed us to identify novel molecular markers for pancreatitis and, at the same time, gain an understanding on the relationship between the endocrine and exocrine compartment during tissue damage.
Publications
Pin, C.L., Rukstalis, J.M., Johnson, C.L. and Konieczny, S.F. (2001) Mice lacking the bHLH transcription factor Mist1 represent a genetic model for pancreatic injury. The Journal of Cell Biology. 155: 519-530.
Johnson, C.L., Kowalik, A.S., Rajakumar, N. and Pin, C.L. (2004) Mist1 is Necessary for the Establishment of Granule Organization in Serous Exocrine Cells of the Gastrointestinal Tract. Mechanisms of Development 121(3): 261-272.
Fazio, E., Everest, M., Colman, R., Wang, R., and Pin, C.L. (2005) Altered Glut-2 accumulation and beta-cell function in mice lacking the exocrine-specific transcription factor, Mist1. Journal of Endocrinology. 187:407-418.
Tuveson, D.A., Zhu, L., Gopinathan, A., Willis, N.A., Kachatrian, L., Grochow, R., Pin, C.L., Mitin, N., Taparowsky, E.J., Gimotty, P.A., Hruban, R.H., Jacks, T., and Konieczny, S.F. (2005) Mist1-KrasG12D knock-in mice develop mixed differentiation metastatic exocrine pancreatic carcinoma. Cancer Research. . 66:242-7.
Rose, K.L., Wang, R., Pin, C.L., and Fraser, D.D. (2007) Combined insulin and bicarbonate therapy elicits cerebral edema in a juvenile mouse model of diabetic ketoacidosis. Paediatric Research 61(3):301-6.
