George A. Porter, Jr., M.D., Ph.D.
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Contact
University of Rochester
School of Medicine and Dentistry
601 Elmwood Ave, Box 631
Rochester, New York 14642
Fax: 585 275-7436
Dr. Porter's laboratory studies mechanisms that control the development of the heart. He has a long-standing interest in the effects of altered intracellular calcium signaling on early heart development. Using novel whole-embryo and organ cultures, he has shown that decreased intracellular calcium levels in the developing heart leads to abnormal development of the cardiac outflow tract. More recent evidence using genetically altered mice shows that the regulation of intracellular calcium levels leads to embryonic demise from non-compaction cardiomyopathy, which comprises up to 13 % of human cardiomyopathy cases. He is currently examining how calcium signaling controls these processes. More recently, he has joined the Mitochondrial Research and Innovation Group at the University of Rochester Medical Center to study how mitochondria, which perform a number of functions within the cells, interact with calcium to regulate cardiac development.
These studies have been funded by the NIH, Pfizer, and the Charles H. Hood Foundation and are currently funded by the Children's Cardiomyopathy Foundation and the Founder's Affiliate of American Heart Association.
His research interests include: Cardiac Developmental Biology, Intracellular Signaling, Calcium Signaling, Mitochondrial Biogenesis, and Cardiomyopathy.
Current Appointments
- Assistant Professor - Department of Pediatrics (SMD)
- Assistant Professor - Department of Pharmacology and Physiology (SMD)
| Education | ||
|---|---|---|
| M.D. Medicine | University of Maryland School of Medicine | 1994 |
| Ph.D. Physiology | University of Maryland School of Medicine | 1993 |
| B.S. Biology | University of Notre Dame | 1986 |
| Post-Doctoral Training & Residency | |
|---|---|
| Fellow, Pediatric Cardiology, Yale University, New Haven, CT; research in lab of Dr. Scott Rivkees. | 1997 - 2000 |
| Resident, Pediatrics, Yale-New Haven Hospital, New Haven, CT. | 1995 - 1997 |
| Intern, Pediatrics, Yale-New Haven Hospital, New Haven, CT | 1994 - 1995 |
| Fellowship Awards | |
|---|---|
| Pfizer, Inc., Postodoctoral Fellowship award entitled "Adenosinergic Control of Embryonic Cardiac Function and Development." Total costs for project period: $181,500 | 1999 - 2002 |
| NIH Training Grant in Membrane Biology, University of Maryland School of Medicine | 1988 - 2000 |
| Recent Journal Articles |
|---|
| Showing the 5 most recent journal articles. (8 available) |
| Lakhani SA, Masud A, Kuida K, Porter GA, Booth CJ, Mehal WZ, Inaya I, Flavell RA . "Caspases 3 and 7: Key mediators of mitochondrial events of apoptosis." Science, 311 (2006): 847-851. |
| Porter GA, Makuck RF, Rivkees SA. "Intracellular calcium plays an essential role in cardiac development." Dev. Dyn, 227 (2003): 280-290. |
| Rentschler S, Zander J, Meyers K, France D, Levine R, Porter G, Rivkees SA, Morley G, Fishman GI . "Neuregulin-1 promotes formation of the murine cardiac conduction system." Proc Natl Acad Sci USA, 99 (2002): 10464-10469. |
| Porter GA, Makuck RF, and Rivkees SA. "Reduction in intracellular calcium levels inhibit myoblast differentiation." J Biol Chem, 277 (2002): 28942-7. |
| Porter GA, Rivkees SA. "The ontogeny of humoral heart rate regulation in the embryonic mouse." Amer. J. Physiol, 281 (2001): R401-407. |
