Sally A. Amundson, Sc.D.

Contact Information

Sally A. Amundson, Sc.D.
Center for Radiological Research
VC 11-215
630 W. 168th St.
New York, NY 10032

Tel: (212) 342-0965
Fax: (212) 305-3229
email: saa2108@columbia.edu

Research Interests

  • Functional genomics of responses to ionizing radiation and other stressors

  • Signal transduction in DNA-damage and stress responses

  • Biological responses to low doses of ionizing radiation

  • Molecular responses to high LET

  • Development of gene expression biomarkers

   Current Research  

The major focus of this laboratory is the functional genomics of radiation responses. This field uses information obtained by genome-wide profiling of gene expression to gain insight into signal transduction and the molecular mechanisms underlying various cellular responses. Genotoxic stress and other adverse environmental conditions elicit a variety of stress-related signals that lead to the altered expression of multiple genes involved in cell-cycle control, programmed cell death, and in some cases DNA repair. Interestingly, key growth-control genes, such as the tumor suppressors p53 and RB, play central roles in some of these signaling pathways, and perturbations in their function in many human tumor cells have important implications for carcinogenesis, radiobiology, and experimental cancer treatment.

The Amundson laboratory has previously applied functional genomics to the study of high and low dose and low dose-rate gamma-ray exposure, and high LET exposures. We have also used the microarray hybridization approach to develop potential gene expression biomarkers of radiation exposure measured in human peripheral blood lymphocytes irradiated both ex vivo and in vivo, and to explore differential responses to radiation in diverse cell types, as well as responses to diverse stress agents. Prior work has also included more conventional studies of the regulation of gene expression, and a study of the relationship between expression levels of specific genes and cellular sensitivity to cytotoxic agents, including many used in cancer therapy.

Newer studies include further functional genomic analysis of various aspects of the bystander effect, signaling from cytoplasmic radiation damage using the Columbia University Microbeam, and further development of gene expression based radiation biodosimetry.

    Academic Training  
 

 

Undergraduate:

B.A., Hamline University, St. Paul, MN, 1986

 

Graduate:

Sc.D., Radiation Biology, Harvard University, School of Public Health, Boston, MA, 1992

 


   Current Academic and Professional Appointments  

   Select Publications Online  

Some papers are available online in PDF format (requires Adobe Acrobat Reader, available for free download here: ).

If you do not find what you are looking for below, try searching for Sally Amundson PubMed.

  • Alexander G., Swartz H., Amundson S.A., Blakely W., Buddemeier B., Gallez B., Dainiak N., Goans R., Hayes R., Jones R., Lowry P., Noska M., Okunieff P., Salner A., Schauer D., Trompier F., Turteltaub K., Voisin P., Wiley A.J., and Wilkins R. BiodosEPR-2006 Meeting: Acute Dosimetry Consensus Committee Recommendations on Biodosimetry Applications in Events Involving Terrorist Uses of Radioactive Materials and Radiation Accidents. Radiat. Meas., 42:972-996 (2007).[abstract] [PDF 419 kb]

  • Amundson S.A., Do K.T., Vinikoor L., Koch-Paiz C.A., Bittner M.L., Trent J.M., Meltzer P. and Fornace A.J, Jr. Stress-specific signatures: expression profiling of p53 wild-type and -null human cells. Oncogene 24:4572-9, (2005). [abstract] [PDF 223 kb]

  • Zhou H., Ivanov V.N., Gillespie J., Geard C.R., Amundson S.A., Brenner D.J., Yu Z., Lieberman H.B. and Hei T.K. Mechanism of radiation-induced bystander effect: role of the cyclooxygenase-2 signaling pathway. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 102:14641-6, (2005). [abstract] [PDF 554 kb]

  • Belyakov O.V., Mitchell S.A., Parikh D., Randers-Pehrson G., Marino S.A., Amundson S.A., Geard C.R. and Brenner D.J. Biological effects in unirradiated human tissue induced by radiation damage up to 1 mm away. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 102:14203-8, (2005). [abstract] [PDF 723 kb]

  • Amundson S.A., Grace M.B., McLeland C.B., Epperly M.W., Yeager A., Zhan Q., Greenberger J.S. and Fornace A.J. Jr. Human in vivo radiation-induced biomarkers: gene expression changes in radiotherapy patients. Cancer Res., 64:6368-6371 (2004). [abstract] [PDF 242 kb]

  • Koch-Paiz C.A., Amundson S.A., Bittner M.L., Meltzer P.S. and Fornace A.J. Jr. Functional genomics of UV radiation responses in human cells. Mutat. Res. 549:65-78 (2004). [abstract] [PDF 531 kb]

  • Amundson S.A. and Fornace A.J. Jr. Microarray approaches for analysis of cell cycle regulatory genes.
    Methods Mol Biol. 241:125-41 (2004).

  • Amundson S.A., Bittner M.L. and Fornace A.J. Jr. Functional genomics as a window on radiation stress signaling. Oncogene 22:5828-5833 (2003). [abstract] [PDF 124 kb]

  • Amundson S.A., Lee R.A., Koch-Paiz C.A., Bittner M.L., Meltzer P., Trent J.M. and Fornace A.J. Jr. Differential responses of stress genes to low dose-rate gamma-irradiation. Molecular Cancer Research 1:445-452 (2003). [abstract] [PDF 189 kb]

  • Bulavin D.V., Demidov O.N., Saito S., Kauraniemi P., Phillips C., Amundson S.A., Sauter G., Anderson C.W., Kallioniemi A., Fornace A.J. Jr. and Appella E. Amplification of the Wip1 phosphatase in human tumors abrogates p53 tumor-suppressor activity. Nature Genetics 31:210-205 (2002). [abstract] [PDF 1.2 mb]

  • Amundson S.A., Patterson A., Do K.T. and Fornace A.J. Jr. A nucleotide excision repair master-switch: p53 regulated coordinate induction of global genomic repair genes. Cancer Biology and Therapy 1:145-149 (2002). [abstract] [PDF 911 kb]

  • Bulavin D.V., Amundson S.A. and Fornace A.J. Jr. p38 and Chk1 kinases: different conductors for the G(2)/M checkpoint symphony. Curr Opin Genet Dev. 12:92-7 (2002). [abstract] [PDF 314 kb]

  • Amundson S.A., Bittner M., Meltzer P., Trent J. and Fornace A.J. Jr. Biological indicators for the identification of radiation exposure in humans. Expert Rev. Mol. Diagn. 1:211-219 (2001). [abstract] [PDF 377 kb]

  • Amundson S.A., Myers T. and Fornace A.J. Jr. An informatics approach identifying markers of chemosensitivity in human cancer cell lines. Cancer Research 60:6101-10 (2000). [abstract] [PDF 412 kb]

  • Koch-Paiz C.A., Momenan R., Amundson S.A., Lamoreaux E. and Fornace A.J. Jr. Estimation of relative mRNA content by filter hybridization to a polyuridylic probe. Biotechniques 29:706-714 (2000). [abstract] [PDF 45 kb]

  • Amundson S.A., Do K.T., Shahab S., Bittner M., Meltzer P., Trent J. and Fornace A.J. Jr. Identification of potential mRNA biomarkers of human ionizing radiation exposure in peripheral blood lymphocytes. Radiation Research 154:342-346 (2000). [abstract] [PDF 120 kb]

  • Smith M.L., Ford J.M., Hollander M.C., Bortnick R.A., Amundson S.A., Seo Y.R., Deng C.X., Hanawalt P.C. and Fornace A.J. Jr. p53-mediated DNA repair responses to UV radiation: studies of mouse cells lacking p53, p21, and/or gadd45 genes. Mol Cell Biol. 20:3705-3714 (2000). [abstract] [PDF 1.5 mb]

  • Amundson S.A., Do K.T. and Fornace A.J. Jr. Stress gene induction by low doses of gamma-rays. Radiation Research 152:225-231 (1999). [abstract] [PDF 1.1 mb]

  • Amundson S.A., Bittner M., Chen Y., Trent J., Meltzer P. and Fornace A.J. Jr. cDNA microarray hybridization reveals complexity and heterogeneity of cellular genotoxic stress responses. Oncogene 18:3666-3672 (1999). [abstract] [PDF 1.5 mb]

  • Amundson S.A., Myers T.G. and Fornace A.J. Jr. Roles for p53 in growth arrest and apoptosis: Putting on the brakes after genotoxic stress. Oncogene 17:3287-3300 (1998). [abstract] [PDF 429 kb]

  • Amundson S.A., Zhan Q., Penn L.Z. and Fornace A.J. Jr. Myc suppresses induction of the growth arrest genes gadd34, gadd45 and gadd153 by DNA-damaging agents. Oncogene 17:2149-54 (1998). [abstract] [PDF 372 kb]

  • Brenner D.J., Hahnfeld P., Amundson S.A. and Sachs R.K. Interpretation of inverse dose-rate effects for mutagenesis by sparsely-ionizing radiation. Int. J. Radiat. Biol. 70:447-458 (1996). [abstract] [PDF 234 kb]

  • Amundson S.A., Chen D.J. and Okinaka R.T. Alpha particle mutagenesis of human lymphoblastoid cell lines. Int. J. Radiat. Biol. 70:219-226 (1996). [abstract] [PDF 214 kb]

  • Amundson S.A. and Chen D.J. Inverse dose-rate effect for mutation induction by g-rays in human lymphoblasts. Int. J. Radiat. Biol. 69:555-563 (1996). [abstract] [PDF 203 kb]

   Laboratory Members   

Current Members of Dr. Sally A. Amundson’s laboratory:

Dr. Shanaz Ghandhi (Post-Doc Research Scientist)
Dr. Alexandre Mezentsev (Associate Research Scientist)
Dr. Sunirmal Paul (Associate Research Scientist)
Ben Yaghoubian (Technician B)

 

Updated 11/29/07

 

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