Faculty

Yue Chen, MD, PhD Assistant Professor E-mail: cheny@pitt.edu Phone: 412-624-5398 Fax: 412-383-8926 Address: 421 Parran Hall 130 DeSoto Street Pittsburgh, PA 15261

Education

MD; Dalian Medical College, China; 1983
MS; Xian Medical College, China; 1989
PhD; University of Pittsburgh; 1998
Postdoctoral; University of Pittsburgh; 1998-1999

Research Interests

Mucosal vaccine development against SIV infection. Characterization of HIV-1 circulating in Chinese former blood/plasma donors and investigation of the mechanism of HIV-1 pathogenesis.

Research Summary

In order to safely deliver SIV proteins into gastrointestinal tract for inducing mucosal immune response to SIV, Clostridium perfringens, one of the bacteria in normal GI flora, is being used as a vehicle to deliver SIV proteins into the GI Tract. Current research includes expressing SIV genes in Clostridium perfringens, delivering orally the transformed bacteria to small animals, and monitoring immune responses to SIV.

To characterize HIV-1 circulating in Chinese former blood/plasma donors and investigate the mechanism of HIV-1 pathogenesis, HIV env, nef and vpr genes were amplified from Chinese patient samples, sequenced and analyzed. Furthermore we have isolated 16 HIV-1 virus isolates from the former blood donors. Phenotypic characterization of the HIV isolates has been performed.

Recent Publications

• Chen, Y., Dampf, D., Chen, M., Kulka, K., Volsky, D.J., Saha, K., and Gupta, P. (2000) Dependence of CD8+ T-cell-mediated suppression of HIV type 1 on viral phenotypes and mediation of phenotype-dependent suppression by viral envelope gene and not by beta-chemokines. AIDS Res Hum Retrovir. 16:117-124.
• Zhou, X., Gordon, S.A., Kim, Y-M., Hoffman, R.A., Chen, Y., Zhang, X-R., Simmons, R.L., and Ford, H.R. (2000) Nitric oxide induces thymocyte apoptosis via a caspase-1 dependent mechanism. J Immunol 163:1252-1258.
• Gupta, P., Leroux, C., Patterson, B., Kingsley, L., Rinaldo, C., Ding, M., Chen, Y., Kulka, K. Buchanan, W., Mckeon, B., and Montelaro, R. (2000) Human immunodeficiency virus type 1 shedding pattern in semen correlates with the compartmentalization of viral quasi species between blood and semen. J Infect Dis 182:79-87.
• Chen, Y., Stanford, A., Simmons, R., Ford, H., and Hoffman, R. (2001) Nitric oxide protects thymocytes from g-irradiation-induced apoptosis in correlation with inhibition of p53 upregulation and mitochondrial damage. Cellular Immunol. 214:72-80.
• Stanford, A., Chen, Y., Hoffman, R.A., and Ford, H.R. (2001) Nitric oxide mediates dendritic cell apoptosis by downregulating inhibitor of poptosis proteins and upregulating effector caspase activity. Surgery 130:326-332.
• Gordon, S.A., Abou-Jaoude, W., Hoffman, R.A., McCarthy, S.A., Kim, Y-M., Zhang, X-R., Simmons, R.L., Zhou, X., Chen, Y., and Ford, H.R. (2001) Nitric oxide induces murine thymocyte apoptosis by oxidative injury and a p53-dependent mechanism. Journal of Leukocyte Biology 70:87-95
• Chen, Y., Helmus, R., McClane, B., Hoffman, R., Watkins, S., Wehrli, T., and Gupta, P. (2004) Use of a clostridium perfringens vector to express high levels of SIV p27 protein for the development of an oral SIV vaccine.  Virology 329:226-233.

• Chen, Y., McClane, B.A., Fisher, D.J., Rood, J.I., and Gupta, P. (2005) Construction of an Alpha Toxin Gene Knockout Mutant of Clostridium perfringens Type A by Use of a Mobile Group II Intron.  Appl. Environ. Microbiol.  71:7542-7547.

• Chen, Y., Craigo, J.K., Ding, M., Guo, Y., Shen, S., Zhou, Y., Wu, H., and Gupta, P.  (2006)  Characterization of the gp120 of circulating HIV type 1 in a group of infected Chinese blood/plasma donors with asymptomatic and symptomatic stages of the disease.  AIDS Res. Hum. Retroviruses 22:1167-1171.
• Chen, Y., Caruso, L., McClane, B., B., Fisher, D., and Gupta, P. (2007) Disruption of a toxin gene by introduction of foreign gene into the chromosome of Clostridium perfringes using targetron-induced mutagnesis.  Plasmid  58:182-189.
• Chen, Y., Caruso, L., Shen, C., Wu, H., Zhou, Y., and Gupta, P.  (2007)  Lack of differences in HIV-1 nef functional domains in infected chinese blood donors at different stages of disease.  AIDS Res. Hum. Retroviruses. 
• Shen C, Gupta P, Wu H, Chen X, Huang X, Zhou Y, Chen Y. Molecular characterization of the HIV type 1 vpr gene in infected Chinese former blood/plasma donors at different stages of diseases. AIDS Res Hum Retroviruses. 2008 Apr;24(4):661-6.
• Sayeed S, Uzal FA, Fisher DJ, Saputo J, Vidal JE, Chen Y, Gupta P, Rood JI, McClane BA. Beta toxin is essential for the intestinal virulence of Clostridium perfringens type C disease isolate CN3685 in a rabbit ileal loop model.
  Mol Microbiol. 2008 Jan;67(1):15-30.