Lurdes Queimado, M.D., Ph.D.

Assistant Professor
Presbyterian Health Foundation Chair in ORL
Department of Otorhinolaryngology
The University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center
975 NE 10th, BRC 1272
Oklahoma City, OK 73104
Office: (405) 271-4232
Lab: (405) 271-4279
Fax: (405) 271-9364
Email: lurdes-queimado@ouhsc.edu

For Current Job Postings: Click Here

Education:

1989 - M.D., Faculty of Medicine, University of Lisbon, Portugal
1992 - Pathology Residence (first year), 1992, Faculty of Medicine, New University of Lisbon, Portugal
1994 - M.S. Oncobiology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Porto, Portugal
1999 - Ph.D. Molecular Pathology, Faculty of Medicine, New University of Lisbon, Portugal
1996-2002 - Postdoctoral Fellow/Instructor, Molecular Biology and Oncology, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas

Honors and Awards:

  • 1983-1989   Predoctoral Scholarship Award (Medical School), Junta Nacional de Investigação Científica Tecnológica (JNICT)
  • 1983-1989   Excellency Scholar Award, Fundação Rotária Portuguesa
  • 1984-1985   Best Scholar Award in 1984/85, Fundação Rotária Portuguesa
  • 1991            Fellowship Award in Oncology, Liga Portuguesa contra o cancro
  • 1992-1994   Scholarship Award in Oncobiology, JNICT
  • 1995            Scholar Award in Genomics, Fundação-Luso-Americana-para-Desenvolvimento
  • 1995-1998   Scholarship Award in Molecular Biology, JNICT
  • 2002-pres.   Presbyterian Health Foundation Chair in Otorhinolaryngology, PHF

Memberships:

  • 1989-pres.   Portuguese Association "Ordem dos Médicos"
  • 1996-pres.   American Association for Cancer Research

Research Interests:

Our research focuses on two areas of major relevance for oncogenesis and targeted cancer therapy: the study of the molecular alterations present in head and neck tumors and the role of DNA repair mechanisms in oncogenesis and therapeutic resistance. Our ultimate goal is to elucidate the molecular mechanisms that lead to cancer with the aim of identifying molecular targets for the rational design of novel therapeutic agents. Our studies also provide an opportunity to dissect biochemical pathways of cell growth and differentiation.

Current areas of investigation:

  1. The role of MMS19 in DNA repair and transcription

    Nucleotide excision repair (NER) removes a wide range of structurally distinct DNA lesions including ultra-violet (UV) radiation-induced photoproducts and bulky chemical adducts. NER efficiency plays a significant role in development of UV- and other carcinogen-induced cancers and in tumor resistance to chemo- and radio-therapy. We recently cloned a novel human gene, MMS19, required for NER and RNA Pol II transcription. However its precise role in each process is unknown. Our objective is to characterize MMS19’s function in these cellular processes. We have shown that human MMS19 originates multiple splice variants which when expressed in a yeast mms19 deletion strain are functionally distinct. We have also associated specific MMS19 protein domains with NER and transcription functions. Our results highlight the functional significance of MMS19 variants and suggest they regulate the switch between NER and transcription. The current major goals of this project are to further characterize the role of MM 19 splice variants and the physical interactions of MMS19 polypeptides with candidate proteins.

  2. The Wnt pathway regulates craniofacial morphogenesis and salivary gland cancer

    The Wnt signaling pathway controls many events during embryogenesis and oncogenesis. Activation of this pathway, mainly through mutations in the intracellular components or over-expression of WNTs, is a well established oncogenic signal in several human and mouse tissues. Down-regulation of secreted Wnt antagonists has recently been pinpointed as an additional mechanism of Wnt activation. In transgenic mouse models activation of the Wnt pathway leads to a high frequency of benign and malignant salivary gland tumors. Our objective is to determine if the Wnt pathway is involved in human salivary gland tumors and specifically to determine the role of Wnt agonists and antagonists in that process.

Publications Relevant for Current Projects:

  • Queimado L, Lopes C, Reis AMC. WIF1, an inhibitor of the Wnt pathway, is rearranged in salivary gland tumors. Genes Chromosomes and Cancer, 2006 (In press).
  • Hatfield MD, Reis AM, Obeso, D, Cook JR, Thompson DM, Rao M, Friedberg EC, Queimado L. Identification of MMS19 domains with distinct functions in NER and transcription. DNA Repair, 5:914-924, 2006. LINK
  • Queimado L, Rao M, Schultz RA, Koonin EV, Aravind L, Stefanini M, Friedberg EC. Cloning the human and mouse MMS19 genes and functional complementation of a yeast mms19 mutant. NAR, 29:1884-1891, 2001. LINK
  • Queimado L, Lopes C, Du F, Martins C, Fonseca I, Bowcock A, Soares J and Lovett M. In Vitro Transformation of Cell Lines from Human Salivary Gland Tumors. Int J Cancer, 81:793-798, 1999. LINK
  • Queimado L, Lopes C, Du F, Martins C, Bowcock A, Soares J and Lovett M. The Pleomorphic Adenoma Gene 1 is expressed in cultured benign and malignant salivary gland tumors cells. Lab Invest, 79:583-589, 1999. LINK
  • Queimado L & Soares J. Molecular alterations in salivary gland tumors. Am J Surg Pathol, 22:1163-1164, 1998.
  • Queimado L, Reis A, Martins C, Fonseca I, Lovett M, Soares J, Parreira L. A refined localization of two deleted regions in chromosome 6q associated with salivary gland carcinomas. Oncogene, 16:83-88, 1998. LINK
Positions Available:

POSTDOCTORAL POSITION
A postdoctoral position is available to investigate the molecular links between transcription and nucleotide excision repair and their implications for the treatment of human cancer. Candidates must have a Ph.D. with a strong background in biochemistry or molecular and cellular biology, as well as a strong work ethic. Interested candidates should send a curriculum vitae and the names and addresses of three references to:
Dr. Lurdes Queimado
Assistant Professor of Otorhinolaryngology
University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center
Biomedical Research Center, Room 1272
975 N.E. 10th Street
Oklahoma City, Oklahoma 73104
e-mail: lurdes-queimado@ouhsc.edu