CARROLL, David J

David J CARROLL}

Contact Information

Associate Professor and Director of Graduate Programs in Biological Sciences
Biological Sciences Department
College of Science
F.W. Olin Life Sciences, 222
Phone: 7133
Email: dcarroll@fit.edu

Web & Social Networking

College of Science

Biological Sciences Department

Research & Project Interests

Our lab is interested in the molecular mechanisms that regulate oocyte maturation and fertilization. Sperm-egg fusion initiates a transient increase in the concentration of cytoplasmic calcium in the egg. This increase is a fundamental process that occurs in the eggs of all the organisms that have been studied and it is critical for activating the egg to begin development. Incredibly, the molecular mechanism that links the sperm-egg interaction to the initiation of this calcium increase is only now beginning to be understood.

Our research focuses on the role of a particular enzyme called phospholipase C gamma (PLCg). PLCg is a member of a larger class of cytoplasmic enzymes called phospholipases. These enzymes function to produce two signaling messenger molecules called diacylglycerol and inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate from membrane phospholipids. They function in many cell types, including nerves, muscles and immune cells.

Keywords

Reproductive Biology
Developmental Biology
Fertilization
Signal Transduction
Biological Sequence Analysis

Associate Professor and Director of Graduate Programs in Biological Sciences
Biological Sciences Department, College of Science

Educational Background

B.S., Microbiology Auburn University 1988
M.S., Zoology Auburn University 1991
Ph.D., Biomedical Science University of Connecticut 1996

Professional Experience

Director of Graduate Programs in Biological Sciences, Florida Institute of Technology, Melbourne, FL. 2010 - present

Associate Professor, Department of Biological Sciences, Florida Institute of Technology, Melbourne, FL.
2005 - present

Assistant Professor, Department of Biological Sciences, Florida Institute of Technology, Melbourne, FL.
1999 - 2005

NIH NRSA Postdoctoral Research Fellow with Dr. Kathy Foltz, Department of Molecular, Cellular and Developmental Biology, University of California, Santa Barbara, CA. 1997 - 1999

Associate Editor BMC Developmental Biology
2008 - present

Current Research

Using a combination of biochemistry, molecular biology and live cell microscopy, we have discovered that PLCg is required for the initiation of the calcium increase during fertilization in starfish and sea urchin eggs. In collaboration with Dr. Kathy Foltz of the University of California–Santa Barbara and Dr. Laurinda Jaffe of the University of Connecticut Health Center, we have recently cloned a starfish PLCg cDNA from an arrayed oocyte cDNA library. We are currently using this clone as a tool to look for proteins that interact with PLC? in a fertilization-specific manner. We have determined that there are a suite of tyrosine-phosphorylated proteins, some from the sperm and some from the egg, that bind to PLCg only after fertilization. The identification of these proteins is a major goal of the laboratory in the coming years.

Selected Publications

McGinnis, LK, Carroll, DJ, Kinsey, WH (2011) Protein tyrosine kinase signaling during oocyte maturation and fertilization. Mol. Reprod. Dev. 78:831-45.

Stricker, S.A., Carroll, D.J., Tsui, W.L. (2010) Roles of Src Family Kinase signaling and the first cell cycle in the marine protostome worm Cerebratulus. Int. J. Dev. Biol. 54:787-93.

Carroll, D.J. and Wei, H. (2009) Combining Microinjection and Immunoblotting to Analyze MAP Kinase Phosphorylation in Single Starfish Oocytes and Eggs. Methods Mol. Biol. 518, 57 -66.

*Runft, L.R., *D.J. Carroll, *J. Gillett, A.F. Giusti, F.J. ONeill and K.R. Foltz. 2004. Identification of a Starfish Egg PLC gamma that regulates Ca2+ release at fertilization. Dev. Biol. 269 (May 1): 220-236. *These 3 authors contributed equally to the project and manuscript.

Kumano, M., D.J. Carroll, J.R. Denu and K.R. Foltz. 2001. Calcium-mediated inactivation of the MAP kinase pathway in sea urchin eggs at fertilization.
Dev. Biol. 236:244-257.

Carroll, D.J., D.T. Albay, K. Hoang, F.J. ONeill, M. Kumano and K.R. Foltz. 2000. The relationship between calcium, MAP kinase, and the initiation of DNA synthesis in the sea urchin egg at fertilization. Dev. Biol. 217:179-191.