One of the great strengths of the Society for In Vitro Biology is our membership. As a new recurring feature, we will be including several membership profiles in each published issue of the In Vitro Report. Our goal is that these profiles will help our membership to stay connected and possibly promote collaborations amongst our SIVB members. Michael Dame, In Vitro Animal Cell Sciences (IVACS) Co-Chair Membership, and Magnolia Ariza-Nieto, IVACS Secretary, have submitted membership profiles for this issue of the In Vitro Report.

Michael Dame

Michael Dame, IVACS Co-Chair Membership

Senior Research Associate, Laboratory Manager
Pathology Department, University of Michigan Medical School, & JVBiolabs, LLC; [email protected]
Human interest – Peace Corps Morocco, Aikido.

My first introduction to the Society of In Vitro Biology was through Eugene Elmore, Ph.D. (now President-elect) at an annual meeting in Tucson. We started by discussing our research, and then Eugene matter-of-factly parted with, “You should join us in some of the society activities.” Now five years with SIVB, I have convened five sessions, moderated two, published and reviewed manuscripts in the society journal, acted on program committees, and have had many more opportunities to present our research at meeting symposia. My work (publications) primarily focuses on colon cancer prevention studies using novel in vitro models to ascertain growth modulation/differentiation in whole human colonic mucosa, crypts, and cells. The Society of In Vitro Biology is a wonderful organization, with enthusiastic scientific exchanges, challenging opportunities, and yet the most fulfilling, I believe, would be the relationships made with exceptional individuals. They have opened new insights for me, been a source of motivation and have provided a support foundation outside of my own institution. That leads to my newest SIVB role – IVACS Co-chair Membership. SIVB is poised to have a significant role in the future of in vitro biology, including the expansion of stem cell research, the mandate for animal model replacements, the need for in vitro disease models, as well as continued new cell isolations/characterizations. SIVB’s exposure is critical and I would like to take this opportunity to invite members to share any ideas or to participate themselves in helping promote the society.

Funded Grants:

  1. Association for International Cancer Research (AICR); James Varani(PI); 06/01/11 – 05/31/13
    DIETARY TRACE METALS AND COLON CANCER PREVENTION
    The goal of this study is to investigate the role of trace elements of the lanthanoid series in conjunction with Ca2+ for improved growth control in the colon and enhanced chemopreventive activity as compared to Ca2+ alone. This includes a 15-month dietary intervention study in healthy mice on a high-fat Western-style diet, and examination in human colon tissue in organ culture for lanthanoid-induced changes in epithelial cell differentiation and proliferation.
    Role: Co-investigator
  2. JVBiolabs, LLC; Varani (PI)        04/1/12 – 03/31/13

    Moncolonal antibodies to OFA: Therapeutic and diagnostic potential
    The oncofetal antigen/immature laminin receptor protein (OFA/iLRP) is a surface protein thought to be present on virtually every tumor cells but undetectable on most normal cells. A number of unique monoclonal antibodies that react with OFA/iLRP but do not react with the 67-kD, immunologically-related, mature laminin receptor have been generated. We will determine 1) if monoclonal antibodies with specificity for OFA/iLRP can interact with a series of murine and human tumor cells, 2) if these antibodies can suppress tumor growth/induce cytotoxicity in in vitro models of a murine/human tumor cells, and 3) the nature of the immunoreactive surface proteins.

Citations for Recently Published Manuscripts

  1. Dame MK and Varani J. Human colon tissue in organ culture. In Davies J (Ed.), Replacing animal models: a practical guide to creating and using biomimetic alternatives. Edinburgh, Scotland: Wiley-Blackwell. 2012: 69. DOI: 10.1002/9781119940685.ch7
  2. Bleavins K, Perone P, Naik M, Rehman M, Aslam MN, Dame MK, Meshinchi S, Bhagavathula N, Varani J. Stimulation of Fibroblast Proliferation by Insoluble Gadolinium Salts. Biol Trace Elem Res. 2012 Feb;145(2):257-67. PMID: 21882070 PMCID:PMC3273605
  3. Jenkins W, Perone P, Walker K, Bhagavathula N, Aslam MN, Dasilva M, Dame MK, Varani J. Fibroblast Response to Lanthanoid Metal Ion Stimulation: Potential Contribution to Fibrotic Tissue Injury. Biol Trace Elem Res. 2011 Dec;144(1-3):621-35 PMID: 21484406 PMCID:PMC3214234
  4. Aslam, MN, Paruchuri T, Bergin I, Rush H, Hampton A, Naik M, Rehman M, Dame MK, Varani J. A multi-mineral natural product from red marine algae reduces colon polyp formation in C57BL/6 mice. Nutrition and Cancer. 2012 (in press)

Magnolia Ariza-Niet

Magnolia Ariza-Nieto, IVACS Secretary

I am currently interested in understanding regulatory signaling between organs in humans that would cause changes in the expression of adipokines. We believe dysregulation of the epigenome is involved in this process and wonder to what extent the epigenome is modified in response to biotic and abiotic environmental factors, and if diet and the environmental factors can affect the expression of single or multiple genes at the same time. We are currently using a human genotyped in vitro model called body-on-a-chip BOAC (Shuler ML, 2012) that together with clinical observation allows for the identification of  epigenetic sensors. I am part of a multidisciplinary group of researchers led by Doctor Michael Shuler at the department of biomedical engineering at Cornell University and the Guthrie Foundation with the common goal to develop in vitro tools to prevent the onset of obesity. I am a molecular biologist with expertise in both plant and mammalian cell systems and my role comes handy when we try to understand the complex diet-host interactions when we assess nutrient bioavailability (Definition. “Bioavailability is a function of absorptive and post absorptive processes that in turn are influenced by diet, individuality and complex diet-host interactions” Caudill MA 2011).

I am originally from Colombia, although most of my school years I spent in the Twin Cities in Minnesota while my father dedicated his life to improving agricultural and animal husbandry systems through international collaborations between the University of Minnesota and the Colombian government. Ventures that were the starting point to maximize small farmer’s productivity in Colombia; with long term effect to the point that both plant and animal food production systems in Colombia are plentiful 50 years later.  Colombia became a model in the 70’s for small farming sustainable food production systems and that had a great impact on public health and in my view towards research. My mother a young woman in the 60’s had perhaps the greatest influence in my life assuring that my two sisters and I got the best education available; assuring that whatever we decided to do was done to the highest standards of ethics and leading knowledge. She taught us to love life and nature. I particularly remember growing up on a farm and taking after dinner walks to appreciate the new flowers in bloom, their shapes, colors and scents, and also the plant breeding trials and the animal husbandries. We always were aware of the benefits of science, sustainability and the benefits to society and mankind. This was the beginning of my scientific research career in basic, however real life, applied science.

I obtained an honors undergraduate degree in Food Science in 1985 from the Incca University in Bogota, Colombia, my theses “Vitamin A bioavailability assessment after consumption of pumpkin (Cucurbita maxima) fortified bread in suburban areas of Bogotá”. My first job was with the Colombian government research institute ICA; working with micronutrient malnutrition, isolation and quantification of phytonutrients, and genotyping and phenotyping exotic tropical species from the Amazon rain forest and the east plains of Colombia. I earned an MSc degree in biotechnology with a major in plant and microbial production from Wagenigen Agricultural University in 1997 and a PhD in Cell and Molecular Biology from the University of Arkansas, Fayetteville in 2004 with a Fulbright scholarship. My dissertation “Site-specific integration of transgenes in rice (Oriza sativa) using the CRE-lox system” was awarded the SIVB Wilton R Earle Award and Student Travel Award in 2004. I then joined Cornell University/USDA-ARS where I was actively involved with the HarvestPlus biofortification strategy doing research towards the elimination of micronutrient malnutrition “hidden hunger”; by assessing micronutrient accumulation, distribution and storage in plants (staple crops) and their bioavailability using the in vitro digestion Caco-2 cell model. In 2009, I created a lab to genotype and phenotype humans presented with obesity using structural and functional genomics to investigate changes in adipokine levels of expression, post-transcriptional modifications and the effect of their circulating levels on metabolism.

I am interested in knowing what causes dysregulation of adipokines and the role that micronutrient present in the food matrix play in this process. For this, I am studying a series of obese human donors, carrying recessive autosomal single nucleotide polymorphisms associated with the methylation pathway. I use mesenchymal stem cells to create a series of organ like cell lines that are used to load the BOAC device and test diet-host interactions. I believe the BOAC device is the tool that will make current the old proverb, “Let thy food be thy medicine.” Hippocrates in 370 BC. I believe the clinical observations together with the BOAC In vitro model in place will facilitate the elucidation of mechanisms involved in the etiology and pathogenesis of obesity that lead to cancer. I will focus primary in the effect that, phytonutrients present in wild cultivars of staple crops, botanical and exotic tropical fruits, have on the maintenance of the epigenome.

My goal as IVACS secretary is to maintain the flow of information and ideas among members of the In Vitro Animal Cell Sciences Section (IVACS) and the Plant Biotechnology Section (PBS) for a successful collaboration environment of SIVB as a whole.

For further information, please contact the Editors-in-Chief, Michael Fay ([email protected]) and Sylvia Mitchell ([email protected]) or Managing Editor, Michele Schultz ([email protected]).

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