Math Cuajungco

Transient Receptor Potential (TRP) ion channels in human health and disease

Lysosomes are important cell organelles involved in the breakdown of membrane proteins and other molecules. These intracellular vesicles have been implicated in many neurodegenerative disorders such as Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease and Mucolipidosis type IV. The lysosomal membrane contains a diverse number of receptor and ion channel proteins that mediate its normal function. Some of these proteins are also involved in protein trafficking through processes known as endocytosis and exocytosis. It is thus not surprising that dysfunction of these proteins result in human pathological conditions.

The Cuajungco lab is interested in the role that specific lysosomal membrane proteins and ion channels play during normal and pathological states. Our investigations involve collaborations from various disciplines within CSUF and other institutions. We use both prokaryotic and eukaryotic cell culture models, as well as molecular and cellular biology methods to accomplish our research goals. One of our projects use membrane-based yeast two-hybrid genetic screens to identify protein-protein interactors for TRP channels found in lysosomes. Subsequently, we aim to characterize the functional significance of identified membrane protein interactors for the TRP channels using biochemical and microscopy techniques. Another aspect of our research is to study the relationships between lysosomes and metal transport or storage using fluorescence microscopy and spectroscopy. Finally, we use RNA interference to target lysosomal TRP channels, and analyze gene expression of certain lysosome-associated proteins to uncover hidden signaling pathways involved in cellular endocytosis and exocytosis events.

Selected publications (Click for full list)

Ali, S., & Cuajungco, M. P. (2020). Protocol for quantifying zinc flux in cultured cells using fluorescent indicators. STAR Protoc, 1(2), 100050. doi:10.1016/j.xpro.2020.100050

Chacon, J., & Cuajungco, M. P. (2018). Comparative de novo transcriptome assembly of Notophthalmus viridescens RNA-seq data using two commercial software programs. Calif J Health Promot, 16(1), 46-53. doi:10.32398/cjhp_20181601

Chacon, J., Rosas, L., & Cuajungco, M. P. (2019). ZnT3 expression levels are down-regulated in the brain of Mcoln1 knockout mice. Mol Brain, 12(1), 24. doi:10.1186/s13041-019-0446-3

Cuajungco, M. P., Ramirez, M. S., & Tolmasky, M. E. (2021). Zinc: Multidimensional Effects on Living Organisms. Biomedicines, 9(2). doi:10.3390/biomedicines9020208

Escobar, A., Styrpejko, D. J., Ali, S., & Cuajungco, M. P. (2022). Transmembrane 163 (TMEM163) protein interacts with specific mammalian SLC30 zinc efflux transporter family members. Biochem Biophys Rep, 32, 101362. doi:10.1016/j.bbrep.2022.101362

Kang, C., Rostoker, R., Ben-Shumel, S., Rashed, R., Duty, J. A., Demircioglu, D., . . . Gallagher, E. J. (2021). TMEM176B regulates AKT/mTOR signaling and tumor growth in triple-negative breast cancer. Cells, 10(12), 3430. doi:10.3390/cells10123430

Sanchez, V. B., Ali, S., Escobar, A., & Cuajungco, M. P. (2019). Transmembrane 163 (TMEM163) protein effluxes zinc. Arch Biochem Biophys, 677, 108166. doi:10.1016/j.abb.2019.108166

Styrpejko, D. J., & Cuajungco, M. P. (2021). Transmembrane 163 (TMEM163) protein: a new member of the zinc efflux transporter family. Biomedicines, 9(2), 220. doi:10.3390/biomedicines9020220

Yan, H., Yang, S., Hou, Y., Ali, S., Escobar, A., Gao, K., . . . Wang, J. (2022). Functional study of TMEM163 gene variants associated with hypomyelination leukodystrophy. Cells, 11(8). doi:10.3390/cells11081285