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Julia T. Oxford
Professor, Department of Biological Sciences
Department: Biological Sciences
Year arrived at BSU: 2000
Mailing Address:

Department of Biology
Boise State University
Boise, ID 83725-1515
Office Location: Science/Nursing 211
Office Number: 208-426-2395
Office Fax: 208-426-4267
E-Mail Address: joxford@boisestate.edu
Academic Degrees | Teaching | Reseach Interests | Recent Publications
   
ACADEMIC DEGREES
 
  • B.S., Linfield College, Biology and Chemistry
  • M.S., Washington State University, Biophysics and Biochemistry, 1985
  • Ph.D., Washington State University, Biophysics and Biochemistry, 1986
  • Postdoctoral Fellow, Swiss Institute for Experimental Cancer Research, 1987-1988
  • Postdoctoral Fellow, Washington State University, 1988
  • Postdoctoral Fellow and Senior Research Associate, Shriners Hospital for Crippled Children and Oregon Health Sciences University 1989-96
  • Research Assistant Professor, Dept. of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, OHSU, 1995-1996 and 1998-2000
  • Assistant Professor, Department of Clinical Sciences, Colorado State University, 1996-1998


TEACHING
 

 Boise State University

                Biology/Materials Science 477 Biomaterials Science, 2005, 2006.

                Biology 497/597 Biochemistry of Cell Signaling, 2004.

                Biology 497/597 Scientific Writing for publication, 2003-2006

                Biology 497/597 Introduction to Bioinformatics,  2002.

                Biology 497 Reading and Laboratory Studies in Embryology, Spring 2002.

                Biology 497/597 Fetal Alcohol Syndrome Study, Spring 2002.

                Biology 191 General Biology, select lectures and laboratory,  2001-2004.

                Biology 497, Advanced Developmental Biology, lecture and laboratory, 2001.

                Zoology 351/351G Vertebrate Embryology, lecture and laboratory, 2001-2005.

                Biology 493, Internship in Laboratory Research, 2001-2006.

                Biology 202, General Zoology lecture and laboratory, 2000.

 

Portland State University

                Chemistry 450 Biochemistry, 1991-1994.

                Chemistry 250 Nutrition, 1991.

 

Lewis and Clark College, Portland, Oregon

                Chemistry 335 and 336, Biochemistry lecture and laboratory, 1992.
RESEARCH INTERESTS
 
   

We are investigating the function of the individual molecular constituents of the extracellular matrix in health and in disease. The molecules of the cellular matrix provide structural integrity of the tissue in the case of tissues like cartilage,bone andtendon. In the case of mutations in these molecular constituents, congenital defects may arise and degenerative diseases can develop, such as osteoarthritis.

Type XI collagen plays a regulatory role in the biosynthesis of the extracellular matrix of cartilage. In it's absence, mice develop chondrodysplasia with abnormalities in cartilage of the limbs, ribs, jaw and trachea. In humans, mutations in type XI collagen lead to symptoms of Marshall and Stickler syndromes, including cleft palate, sever myopia, deafness, dental anomalies and early onset osteoarthritis.

Type XI collagen exists as a set of isoforms which arise by alternative splicing of the mRNA encoding the alpha 1 chain of this collagen. The process of alternative splicing is regulated in a tissue-specific and developmental stage specific manner. We hypothesize that this regulation is key to the cellular differentiation of mesenchymal cells into chondrocytes and proper skeletal development. The resulting protein is responsible for regulation of collagen fibril formation and interactions between the collagen network and the other molecular constituents of the extracellular matrix. In our laboratory we utilize techniques of biochemistry (chromatography, SDS-PAGE, Western blotting), molecular biology (expression of recombinant proteins, in vitro splicing studies, in situ hybridization, PCR, gel-shift assays), cell biology (cell culture models, metabolic labeling of proteins during biosynthesis, kinetic studies of proteolytic processing of proteins) and transgenic mouse methodology.

 
RECENT PUBLICATIONS [click to open]
  1. Fallahi, A., Kroll, B., Warner, L., Oxford, R., Irwin, K., Mercer, L., Shadle, S., Oxford, JRT. “Structural model of the amino propeptide of collagen XI alpha 1 chain with similarity to the LNS domains” (2005) Protein Science, 14(6) 1526-1537.

  2. Warner, L.R., Fallahi, A., Irwin, K., Yingst, S., Shadle, S., Oxford, J.T., “Modeling and characterization of the amino propeptide of collagen a1(XI), a regulatory domain in collagen fibrillar architecture” (2005) Proceedings of the Materials Science Research Society, L.4.9.1-L.4.9.6.

  3. Gerritsen, M., Hampikian, J., Knowlton, W., Oxford, J., Warner, L., Araujo, D., and Clark, Z. “Collagen fibrillogenesis on Ti-6Al-4V-ELI” in Coatings, Materials Science and Technology, (2005) pp. 97-100.

  4. Warner L, Brown R, Yingst S,  Oxford J. Isoform-specific heparan sulfate binding within the N-terminal noncollagenous domain of collagen a1(XI) (2006) J Biol Chem. 281:39507-16.

  5.  Warner L, Blasick C, Brown R, Oxford J. “Expression, purification and refolding of recombinant collagen a1(XI) N-terminal domain splice variants”, (2007) Protein Expr Purif. 52, 403-409.

  6. Dufty BM, Warner LR, Hou ST, Jiang SX, Gomez-Isla T, Leenhouts KM, Oxford JT, Feany MB, Masliah E, Rohn TT “Calpain-Cleavage of α-synuclein;  Connecting proteolytic processing to disease-linked aggregation” (2007) Neurobiology 170, 1725-1738.

  7. Takata, T, Oxford J.T., Brandon, T.R., Lampi K.J. “Deamidation Alters the Structure and Decreases the Stability of Human Lens betaAlpha3-Crystallin” (2007) Biochemistry, 46:8861-71.

  8. Gerritsen, M, Oxford, J.T., Frary, M., Henderson, J., Hampikian, J.M. “ Immuno-SEM characterization of developing bovine cartilage”, (2008) Materials Science and Engineering: C, 28:341-346.

  9. Kahler, R., Yingst, S., Krawczak, D., Oxford, J., and Westendorf, J. “Collagen 11a1 is indirectly activated by Lymphocyte Enhancer-binding factor 1 (Lef1) and negatively regulates osteoblast maturation” (2008) Matrix Biology, 27(4):330-8. PMCID: PMC2431459 [Available on 05/01/09].

  10. Bowen, KB, Reimers, AP, Luman, S, Kronz, JD, Fyffe, WE, Oxford, JT "Immunohistochemical localization of collagen type XI alpha 1 and alpha 2 chains in human colon tissue"  (2008) Journal of Histochemistry and Cytochemistry, 56:275-283. PMCID: PMC2324180 [Available on 03/01/09]

  11.  Halsted, KC, Bowen, KB, Bond, L, Jorcyk, CJ, Fyffe, WE, Kronz, JD, Oxford, JT “Collagen XI α1 in normal and malignant breast tissue” accepted with minor revision, (2008) Modern Pathology. 21:1246-54. NIHMS#  77903.

  12. Yingst, S, Cole, J. , Warner, L., Bloxham, K., Brown, R., Kenoyer, L., Knowlton, B., Oxford, JRT., “Characterization of Collagenous Matrix Assembly in a Chondrocyte Model System” in press,(2008)  Journal of Biomedical Materials Science.

  13. Takumi Takata, Julie T Oxford, Borries Demeler, and Kirsten J Lampi, Deamidation destabilizes and triggers aggregation of a lens protein, A3-crystallin, (2008) Protein Science. 17:1565-75.  PMCID: PMC2525517 [Available on 09/01/09]
   
GRADUATE STUDENTS

Luke Woodbury, 2006-2007, Histological characterization of the Col11a1deltaVR mouse model for osteoarthritis

                Undergraduate Research Symposium Presentation, 2006

 

Erik Linn, 2006-2007, Targeted deletion of Col11a1 variable region (VR); a model for osteoarthritis, Boise State

                University

                Award recipient of the MSMRI research fellowship, 2006-2007

                Undergraduate Research Symposium Presentation, 2007

 

Jeremiah Maschmann, 2006-2007, Genomic analysis of the collagen gene family in zebrafish

                Undergraduate Research symposium Presentation, 2006

 

Rohn McCune, 2004-2005, Protein purification and refolding, Boise State University

                BRIN Summer Research Fellow, 2004

                Recipient of First Place in BRIN Undergraduate Student Poster Competition

                Award recipient of NASA Idaho Space Consortium Undergraduate Team Research Grant, 2005

                Undergraduate Research Symposium Presentation, 2005

 

Desiree Hansen, 2005, Analysis of the microenvironment of chondrosarcoma cells, Boise State University

                Award recipient of NASA Idaho Space Consortium Undergraduate Team Research Grant, 2005

                Undergraduate Research Symposium Presentation, 2005

 

Arzhang Fallahi, 2003-2004 Homology modeling of the amino propeptide domain of collagen XI alpha 1 chain,

                Boise state University and Albertson College of Idaho

                Began Medical School University of Washington, 2004

 

Becky Kroll, 2002-2004, Surface plasmon resonance measurements of molecular interactions,

                Boise State University

                Began Medical School, University of Utah, 2004

 

Joeli Adriany, 2003-2004, Post-translational modifications of collagen type XI in the vitreous of the eye,

                Boise State University

                Top Ten Scholar, 2004, Boise State University

 

Katey Irwin, 2002-2005, Molecular modeling of the amino propeptide of collagen XI alpha 1 chain,

                Proteomics, Boise State University

                BRIN Summer Research Fellow, 2002 and 2003

                Poster presentation at NCUR Meeting, 2003, Salt Lake City

                McNair Scholar, 2004-2005

                Award recipient of NASA Idaho Space Consortium Undergraduate Team Research Grant, 2005

                Began Graduate School, 2005

 

Pernilla Stridh-Igo, 2001, 2004 Fetal Alcohol Syndrome, Proteomics, Boise State University.

                Top Ten Scholar, 2004

                Began Graduate School, Karolinska Institure, Sweden, 2004

 

Holli Shultz, 2002-2003, Endochondral ossification; Recombinant expression of collagen XI isoforms,

                Boise State University

                Poster presentation at NCUR Meeting, 2003, Salt Lake City

                Pre-med Research Fellow, 2002, Boise State University

 

Theresa Jenkins, 2001-2002, Fetal Alcohol Syndrome, Boise State University

 

Kristy Trent, 2001-2002, The Biochemistry of vitreous humor liquefaction with aging, Boise State University.

 

Jenifer Barry, 2001, Chondrocyte cell culture and protein expression, Boise State University.

                Pre-Med Research Fellow, 2001

                Top Ten Scholar, 2001, Boise State University

                Began Medical School, University of Washington, 2002.

 

Stephen Edwards, 2001, Fetal Alcohol Syndrome, Boise State University.

                Began Dental School, 2002

 

Brian Spangler, 1999, Cartilage regeneration in culture and recapitulation of chondrocyte phenotype. Summer student,

                Oregon State University.

                Began Dental School, 2001.

 

Kristen Jones, 1999, Optimization of culture conditions for bacterial expression of recombinant

                1(XI) collagen amino terminal domain isoforms. Summer student, Concordia University.

 

Stephanie Kristovich, 1999 and 2000, Affinity, chelation and ion exchange chromatography for purification

                of vitreous-specific isoforms of 1(XI) collagen; potential involvement in high myopia and

                retinal detachment.

                Summer student, Linfield College.

                Began Dental School, Oregon Health Sciences University, School of Dentistry, 2000.

 

Lauri (Wood) Hausafus, 1991-92.  Cloning and expression of isoforms of collagen type XI. 

                Summer student, University of Oregon.

                Began Dental School, Oregon Health Sciences University, School of Dentistry, 2001