Sonia L. Planey, PhD

Sonia L. Planey, PhD
Assistant Professor Biochemistry
570.504.9629
splaney@tcmedc.org
 

Research Specialty:
Palmitoylation, signal transduction and cancer biology.

Research Description:
My research interests are primarily in signal transduction and cancer biology.  I have spent the last few years studying protein palmitoylation and developing a proteomic method to identify substrates of palmitoyl acyl transferases (PATs)—the enzymes that mediate palmitoylation.  Despite their recent discovery (2002), many PATs have already been linked to human disease.  One compelling example is the association of ZDHHC2 with cancer.  ZDHHC2 encodes the PAT, DHHC2, and is deleted in many types of cancer.  Its absence in cells is highly correlated with metastasis; therefore, investigating the function of this gene in established cancer cell lines will allow us to better understand its role in preventing metastasis.  DHHC2 modifies specific cellular proteins with a small, regulatory lipid called palmitate. One substrate of this enzyme is cytoskeleton-associated protein 4 (CKAP4/p63) which is a cell-surface receptor for antiproliferative factor (APF)—a small biomolecule that is thought to cause a painful, chronic bladder disorder called interstitial cystitis (IC).  The signaling networks under the control of the ZDHHC2 gene are important to cancer and bladder disease and are the current focus of my research.

Publications:

• Planey SL and Zacharias DA. Palmitoyl acyltransferases, their substrates, and novel assays to connect them. Mol Membr Biol. 2009 Jan;26(1):14-31. PMID: 19191172
  
• Planey SL, Keay SK, Zhang CO, and Zacharias D. Palmitoylation of Cytoskeleton-Associated Protein 4 by DHHC2 Regulates Antiproliferative Factor-mediated Signaling. Mol Biol Cell. 2009 Jan 14. [Epub ahead of print] PMID: 19144824
  
• Zhang J, Planey SL, Ceballos C, Stevens SM Jr, Keay SK, and Zacharias DA.Identification of CKAP4/p63 as a major substrate of the palmitoyl acyltransferase DHHC2, a putative tumor suppressor, using a novel proteomics method. Mol Cell Proteomics. 2008 Jul;7(7):1378-1388. PMID: 18296695
  
• Mikic I, Planey S, Zhang J, Ceballos C, Seron T, VonMassenback B, Watson R, Callaway S, Price J, Hunter E, Zacharias D. A live-cell, image based approach to understanding the enzymology and pharmacology of 2-bromopalmitate and palmitoylation. Methods Enzymol. 2006;414: 150-188. PMID: 17110192
  
• Planey SL, Abrams MT, Robertson NM, and Litwack, G.  Role of apical caspases and glucocorticoid-regulated genes in glucocorticoid-induced apoptosis of pre-B leukemic cells.  Cancer Res. 2003 Jan 1;63(1):172-178. PMID: 12517795
  
• Planey SL, Derfoul A, Robertson NM, and Litwack G.  Inhibition of glucocorticoid-induced apoptosis in 697 pre-B lymphocytes by the mineralocorticoid receptor N-terminal domain.  J Biol Chem. 2002 Nov 1;277(44):42188-42196. PMID: 12194973
  
• Planey SL and Litwack G.  Glucocorticoid-induced apoptosis in lymphocytes.  Biochem Biophys Res Commun. 2000 Dec 20;279(2):307-312. Review. PMID: 11118283
  
• Steplewski A, Ebel W, Planey SL, Alnemri ES, Robertson NM, and Litwack G.  Phosphorylation of the insect immunophilin FKBP46 by the Spodoptera frugiperda homolog of casein kinase II.  Gene. 2000 Apr 4;246(1-2):169-178.  PMID: 10767538

Sonia L. Planey, PhD Biosketch 

Our research is supported by a grant from KIZ