Vickery E. Trinkaus-Randall, PhD

Professor, Boston University Chobanian & Avedisian School of Medicine

Biography

Our laboratory is interested in the wound response and repair of epithelium, neurons and extracellular matrix. 1. In the healthy cornea there are no blood vessels and thus the tissue provides an excellent model to study the communication between nerves and epithelium following injury. Primary neurons are co-cultured with epithelial cells to ask how signaling pathways communicate. These include but are not limited to glutamatergic and purinergic receptor-mediated calcium transients. 2. In addition to these signaling events we have found that when epithelial cells are injured nucleotides are released immediately and cause a distinct phosphorylation of EGF receptor residues that ultimately affect the ability of a cell to migrate. 3. To study controlling factors on extracellular matrix or stromal formation we have developed scaffold-free long-term cultures and these have recently enabled us to study the role of hypoxia, which occurs in a diurnal pattern in this tissue as one sleeps. Our experiments are conducted using a number of organ culture and cell models and use biochemical, cell and molecular techniques. 4. Last but not least we are interested in the role of long sugar chains or glycosaminoglycans on the formation of oligomers and fibrils in light chain amyloid disease using atomic force microscopy, negative staining and biochemical technologies.

Publications

  • Published 8/12/2024

    Segars KL, Azzari N, Cole M, Kushimi L, Rapaka S, Rich CB, Trinkaus-Randall V. Diverse calcium signaling profiles regulate migratory behavior in avascular wound healing and aberrant signal hierarchy occurs early in diabetes. Am J Physiol Cell Physiol. 2024 Oct 01; 327(4):C1051-C1072. PMID: 39129489.

    Read at: PubMed

  • Published 12/21/2023

    Azzari NA, Segars KL, Rapaka S, Kushimi L, Rich CB, Trinkaus-Randall V. Aberrations in Cell Signaling Quantified in Diabetic Murine Globes after Injury. Cells. 2023 Dec 21; 13(1). PMID: 38201230.

    Read at: PubMed

  • Published 8/30/2023

    Segars KL, Trinkaus-Randall V. Glycosaminoglycans: Roles in wound healing, formation of corneal constructs and synthetic corneas. Ocul Surf. 2023 Oct; 30:85-91. PMID: 37657650.

    Read at: PubMed

  • Published 10/6/2022

    Segars KL, Azzari NA, Gomez S, Rich CB, Trinkaus-Randall V. Live-Cell Imaging of Intact Ex Vivo Globes Using a Novel 3D Printed Holder. J Vis Exp. 2022 Oct 06; (188). PMID: 36282717.

    Read at: PubMed

  • Published 5/5/2022

    Segars KL, Azzari NA, Gomez S, Machen C, Rich CB, Trinkaus-Randall V. Age Dependent Changes in Corneal Epithelial Cell Signaling. Front Cell Dev Biol. 2022; 10:886721. PMID: 35602595.

    Read at: PubMed

View All 120 Publications:   View Full Profile in BUMC

Other Positions

  • Professor, Ophthalmology
    Boston University Chobanian & Avedisian School of Medicine
  • Member, Amyloidosis Center
    Boston University
  • Member, Genome Science Institute
    Boston University
  • Co-Director, MD/PhD Program
    Boston University Chobanian & Avedisian School of Medicine, Graduate Medical Sciences
  • Graduate Faculty (Primary Mentor of Grad Students)
    Boston University Chobanian & Avedisian School of Medicine, Graduate Medical Sciences

Websites

Education

  • University of Wisconsin-Madison, PhD
  • Kenyon College, BA

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