Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center

The VICC.ORG Investigator Directory

Jason R. Jessen, Ph.D.

Assistant Professor of Medicine
Assistant Professor of Cancer Biology
VICC Member
Researcher

Contact Information:

Vanderbilt University Medical Center
529 Light Hall
Nashville, TN 37232-0275

Research Specialty:

Molecular and cellular mechanisms of cell migration and polarity underlying vertebrate embryonic development and tumor progression

Research Description:

The zebrafish system provides many tools to examine how key proteins regulate both cell migration and polarity in a complex multicellular environment. My lab is particularly interested in the cell movements that occur during the process of gastrulation. We have identified matrix metalloproteinases and components of a noncanonical Wnt signaling pathway as essential regulators cell migration events in the early embryo. Moreover, we are investing how the human homologs of these proteins interact to control tumor cell migration and invasion.

By taking an integrative approach that combines embryology, biochemistry, molecular genetics, and genomics in zebrafish with studies in human cancer cell models, my laboratory is investigating fundamental morphogenetic processes common to vertebrate development, tumor formation, and metastasis.

Student rotation projects can focus on cell migration mechanisms using either in vitro (human cancer cell lines) or in vivo (zebrafish gastrulation) model systems.

Publications:

• Jessen, JR Analyzing planar cell polarity during zebrafish gastrulation. Methods Mol Biol, 83969-78, 2012.
• Quick, RE, Dunlap, JA, Jessen, JR Expression analysis of zebrafish membrane type-2 matrix metalloproteinases during embryonic development. Gene Expr Patterns, 12(7-8), 254-260, 2012.
• Williams, BB, Cantrell, VA, Mundell, NA, Bennett, AC, Quick, RE, Jessen, JR VANGL2 regulates membrane trafficking of MMP14 to control cell polarity and migration. J Cell Sci, 125(Pt 9), 2141-7, 2012.
• Latimer, A, Jessen, JR Extracellular matrix assembly and organization during zebrafish gastrulation. Matrix Biol, 29(2), 89-96, 2010.
• Cantrell, VA, Jessen, JR The planar cell polarity protein Van Gogh-Like 2 regulates tumor cell migration and matrix metalloproteinase-dependent invasion. Cancer Lett, 287(1), 54-61, 2010.
• Jessen, JR Noncanonical Wnt signaling in tumor progression and metastasis. Zebrafish, 6(1), 21-8, 2009.
• Zeng, XX, Zheng, X, Xiang, Y, Cho, HP, Jessen, JR, Zhong, TP, Solnica-Krezel, L, Brown, HA Phospholipase D1 is required for angiogenesis of intersegmental blood vessels in zebrafish. Dev Biol, 328(2), 363-76, 2009.
• Latimer, AJ, Jessen, JR Hgf/c-met expression and functional analysis during zebrafish embryogenesis. Dev Dyn, 237(12), 3904-15, 2008.
• Coyle, RC, Latimer, A, Jessen, JR Membrane-type 1 matrix metalloproteinase regulates cell migration during zebrafish gastrulation: Evidence for an interaction with non-canonical Wnt signaling. Exp Cell Res, 2008.
• Bradley, KM, Elmore, JB, Breyer, JP, Yaspan, BL, Jessen, JR, Knapik, EW, Smith, JR A major zebrafish polymorphism resource for genetic mapping. Genome Biol, 8(4), R55, 2007.
• Panizzi, JR, Jessen, JR, Drummond, IA, Solnica-Krezel, L New functions for a vertebrate Rho guanine nucleotide exchange factor in ciliated epithelia. Development, 134(5), 921-31, 2007.
• Jessen, JR, Solnica-Krezel, L Axis formation--beta-catenin catches a Wnt. Cell, 120(6), 736-7, 2005.
• Jessen, JR, Solnica-Krezel, L Identification and developmental expression pattern of van gogh-like 1, a second zebrafish strabismus homologue. Gene Expr Patterns, 4(3), 339-44, 2004.
• Penberthy, WT, Zhao, C, Zhang, Y, Jessen, JR, Yang, Z, Bricaud, O, Collazo, A, Meng, A, Lin, S Pur alpha and Sp8 as opposing regulators of neural gata2 expression. Dev Biol, 275(1), 225-34, 2004.
• Jessen, JR, Topczewski, J, Bingham, S, Sepich, DS, Marlow, F, Chandrasekhar, A, Solnica-Krezel, L Zebrafish trilobite identifies new roles for Strabismus in gastrulation and neuronal movements. Nat Cell Biol, 4(8), 610-5, 2002.
• Jessen, JR, Jessen, TN, Vogel, SS, Lin, S Concurrent expression of recombination activating genes 1 and 2 in zebrafish olfactory sensory neurons. Genesis, 29(4), 156-62, 2001.
• Jessen, JR, Willett, CE, Lin, S Artificial chromosome transgenesis reveals long-distance negative regulation of rag1 in zebrafish. Nat Genet, 23(1), 15-6, 1999.
• Meng, A, Jessen, JR, Lin, S Transgenesis. Methods Cell Biol, 60133-48, 1999.
• Jessen, JR, Meng, A, McFarlane, RJ, Paw, BH, Zon, LI, Smith, GR, Lin, S Modification of bacterial artificial chromosomes through chi-stimulated homologous recombination and its application in zebrafish transgenesis. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A, 95(9), 5121-6, 1998.
• Long, Q, Meng, A, Wang, H, Jessen, JR, Farrell, MJ, Lin, S GATA-1 expression pattern can be recapitulated in living transgenic zebrafish using GFP reporter gene. Development, 124(20), 4105-11, 1997.