Information Box Group
Denis Crankshaw
PhD
Professor Emeritus
Reproductive Biology
BIO
Dr. Crankshaw is a professor emeritus at McMaster University and continues to participate in basic research projects both at McMaster and at the National University of Ireland, Galway.
He is a pharmacologist with interests in basic research and drug discovery. For eight years Dr. Crankshaw was the director of the honours biology and pharmacology program at McMaster University. His BSc from the University of London and PhD from the University of Alberta are both in pharmacology. He also did post-doctoral work at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (ETH Zürich) and has taken research leaves at the University of Manchester, Astra Pain Discovery Unit Sweden, AstraZeneca Pharmaceuticals, Wilmington, DE and the National University of Ireland, Galway.
AWARDS
- McMaster University Students’ Union Award for Teaching Excellence, Faculty of Health Sciences, 1997
- McMaster University Students’ Union Award for Teaching Excellence, Faculty of Health Sciences, 2005
RESEARCH INTERESTS
Dr. Crankshaw’s research interests are currently focused almost exclusively on aspect of human myometrial function:
- Operational and analytical pharmacology of human myometrium in vitro
- Development of novel treatments for preterm labour and post-partum hemorrhage
- Understanding the underlying causes of poor uterine contractility during labour
Research Themes
Human myometrium; Contractility; Preterm labour; Pharmacology; Post partum haemorrhage
PUBLICATIONS
Crankshaw, D.J., Crosby, D.A. and Morrison, J.J., 2017. Effects of the KIR7. 1 Blocker VU590 on Spontaneous and Agonist-Induced Contractions of Human Pregnant Myometrium. Reproductive Sciences, p.1933719116687657.
Crosby, D.A., Crankshaw, D.J. and Morrison, J.J., 2016. 202: Human myometrial in vitro effects of pharmacological agents used in the clinical management of postpartum hemorrhage. American Journal of Obstetrics & Gynecology, 214(1), pp.S122-S123.
Morrison, J.J., Crosby, D.A. and Crankshaw, D.J., 2016. In vitro contractile effects of agents used in the clinical management of postpartum haemorrhage. European journal of pharmacology, 789, pp.328-333.
Morrison, J.J., Sweeney, E.M., Crosby, D.A., Crankshaw, D.J. and Dockery, P., 2016. The mitochondrion and uterine myocyte senescence in human pregnant myometrium: implications for labor and maternal age. American Journal of Obstetrics & Gynecology, 214(1), p.S214.
Crankshaw, D.J., O’Brien, Y.M., Crosby, D.A. and Morrison, J.J., 2015. Maternal age and contractility of human myometrium in pregnancy. Reproductive Sciences, 22(10), pp.1229-1235.
Sweeney, E.M., Scully, D., Black, A., Crankshaw, D.J., O’brien, Y., Dockery, P. and Morrison, J.J., 2014. An analysis of connexin 43 expression in term myometrium and the effect of maternal Bmi and age. Journal of Anatomy, 224(2), p.243.
Crankshaw, D.J., Sweeney, E.M., Walsh, J.M., Dockery, P. and Morrison, J.J., 2014. The influence of smooth muscle content and orientation in dissected human pregnant myometrial strips on contractility measurements. European journal of pharmacology, 738, pp.245-249.
Crankshaw, D.J., Walsh, J.M. and Morrison, J.J., 2014. The effects of methyl palmitate, a putative regulator from perivascular fat, on the contractility of pregnant human myometrium. Life sciences, 116(1), pp.25-30.
Sweeney, E.M., Morrison, J.J., Crankshaw, D.J., O’Brien, Y.M. and Dockery, P., 2014, March. Reduced Mitochondrial Content in Pregnant Myometrium from Older Mothers. Reproductive Sciences (Vol. 21, No. 3, pp. 341A-342A).
Sweeney, E.M., Dockery, P., Crankshaw, D.J., O’brien, Y.M., Walsh, J.M. and Morrison, J.J., 2014. Human uterine lower segment myometrial cell and nuclear volume at term: influence of maternal age. Journal of anatomy, 225(6), pp.625-633.
McNulty, J., Keskar, K., Crankshaw, D.J. and Holloway, A.C., 2014. Discovery of a new class of cinnamyl-triazole as potent and selective inhibitors of aromatase (cytochrome P450 19A1). Bioorganic & medicinal chemistry letters, 24(18), pp.4586-4589.
Sweeney, E.M., Morrison, J.J., Crankshaw, D.J., Walsh, J.M. and Dockery, P., 2014, March. Increased Surface to Volume Ratio in Pregnant Myometrial Smooth Muscle from Older Mothers. Reproductive Sciences (Vol. 21, No. 3, pp. 342A-342A).
Crankshaw, D.J., Pistilli, M.J., O’Brien, Y.M., Sweeney, E.M., Dockery, P., Holloway, A.C. and Morrison, J.J., 2013. The effects of extracellular calcium-sensing receptor ligands on the contractility of pregnant human myometrium in vitro. Reproductive sciences, p.1933719112468949.
McNulty, J., Nielsen, A.J., Brown, C.E., DiFrancesco, B.R., Vurgun, N., Nair, J.J., Crankshaw, D.J. and Holloway, A.C., 2013. Investigation of aryl halides as ketone bioisosteres: Refinement of potent and selective inhibitors of human cytochrome P450 19A1 (aromatase). Bioorganic & medicinal chemistry letters, 23(22), pp.6060-6063.
Sweeney, E.M., Crankshaw, D.J., O’brien, Y., Dockery, P. and Morrison, J.J., 2013. Stereology of human myometrium in pregnancy: influence of maternal body mass index and age. American journal of obstetrics and gynecology, 208(4), pp.324-e1.
Sweeney, E., Crankshaw, D., O’brien, Y., Dockery, P. and Morrison, J., 2013. 308: Stereological analysis of human myometrium in third trimester pregnancy: influence of maternal age, body mass index and parity. American Journal of Obstetrics & Gynecology, 208(1), p.S139.
Pistilli, M.J., Petrik, J.J., Holloway, A.C. and Crankshaw, D.J., 2012. Immunohistochemical and functional studies on calcium?sensing receptors in rat uterine smooth muscle. Clinical and Experimental Pharmacology and Physiology, 39(1), pp.37-42.
McNulty, J., Nair, J.J., Vurgun, N., DiFrancesco, B.R., Brown, C.E., Tsoi, B., Crankshaw, D.J. and Holloway, A.C., 2012. Discovery of a novel class of aldol-derived 1, 2, 3-triazoles: Potent and selective inhibitors of human cytochrome P450 19A1 (aromatase). Bioorganic & medicinal chemistry letters, 22(1), pp.718-722.
Holloway AC, Anger DA, Crankshaw DJ, Wu M, Foster WG. (2007). Atrazine-induced changes in aromatase activity in estrogen sensitive target tissues. J. Appl. Toxicol.,.28: 260-270.
Denis Crankshaw
PhD
Professor Emeritus
Reproductive Biology
Alison Holloway
BSc, PhD
Professor, Associate Chair (Research)
Reproductive Biology
BIO
Dr. Holloway received her PhD in zoology from the University of Guelph in 1997, followed by a post-doctoral fellowship with Dr. John Challis at the University of Toronto. She then moved to McMaster University in 2001, and is currently a professor in the Department of Obstetrics & Gynecology. Her laboratory studies how exposure to chemical insults during pregnancy can lead to metabolic deficits in the offspring and the mechanisms underlying these effects. The chemicals that are of interest to her laboratory include pharmaceuticals, chemicals we may intentionally expose ourselves to through lifestyle choices such as cigarette smoking and man-made chemicals present in the environment. She is funded by Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) and Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC).
RESEARCH INTERESTS
Concerns about the impact of chemical toxicants in the environment on animal and human health are increasing globally. While there is a growing perception that these chemical insults adversely affect the health of animal and human populations, there is still little information regarding the mechanisms underlying their actions. To date, research attention has focused largely on adverse reproductive effects following exposure to environmental contaminants with estrogenic activity and has, for the most part, not examined other endocrine or metabolic outcomes. However, it has been suggested that exposure to environmental contaminants may also have an important role in the etiology of metabolic disorders including type 2 diabetes and obesity.
The overall goal of my research program is to understand the mechanism(s) by which chemical insults can cause metabolic endocrine disruption in animal and human populations. In particular, I am interested in determining how fetal exposure to chemical insults results in adverse postnatal health outcomes in the offspring including type 2 diabetes and obesity. The chemicals that I am interested in studying include: chemicals we may intentionally expose ourselves to through lifestyle choices such as cigarette smoking or the use of over the counter natural health products and man-made chemicals present in the environment and naturally occurring chemicals in our diet (e.g., plant phytoestrogens). To date, the bulk of my research has focused on the long-term health consequences of fetal and neonatal exposure to constituents of cigarette smoke and smoking cessation pharmacotherapies. Specifically, we have been examining the mechanisms by which fetal and neonatal exposure to nicotine, as delivered by maternal smoking or nicotine replacement therapy use can result in pancreatic beta cell damage at birth and the development of type 2 diabetes in the adult offspring. My laboratory is also investigating the consequences of fetal exposure to over the counter natural health products, psychiatric medications and man-made chemicals present in the environment on the development of metabolic disorders in adulthood.
Research Themes
Early origins of disease; Fetal toxicology, Smoking, Dysmetabolism; Antidepressant use during pregnancy; pancreas development; Environmental contaminants; Endocrine disruption
PUBLICATIONS
Tung EWY, A Kawata, M Rigde, WJ Bowers, D Caldwell, AC Holloway, B Robaire, BF Hales and MG Wade. 2017. Gestational and lactational exposure to an environmentally-relevant mixture of brominated flame retardants: Effects on neurodevelopment and metabolism. Birth Defects Res 109: 497-512.
Barra NG, M Lisyansky, TA VanDuzer, S Raha, AC Holloway and DB Hardy. Maternal nicotine exposure leads to decreased cardiac protein disulfide isomerase and mitochondrial function in male rat offspring. J Appl Tox (JAT-17-0143 Accepted in press).
De Long NE, DB Hardy, N Ma and AC Holloway. Increased incidence of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease in male rat offspring exposed to fluoxetine during fetal and neonatal life involves the NLRP3 inflammasome and augmented de novo hepatic lipogenesis. J Appl Tox (JAT-17-0201 Accepted in press).
De Long, N.E. and Holloway, A.C., 2017. Early-life chemical exposures and risk of metabolic syndrome. Diabetes, Metabolic Syndrome and Obesity: Targets and Therapy, 10, p.101.
Auerbach, S., Filer, D., Reif, D., Walker, V., Holloway, A.C., Schlezinger, J., Srinivasan, S., Svoboda, D., Judson, R., Bucher, J.R. and Thayer, K.A., 2016. Prioritizing environmental chemicals for obesity and diabetes outcomes research: a screening approach using ToxCast™ high-throughput data. Environmental health perspectives, 124(8), p.1141.
Reynolds, J.N., Dobson, C.C., Brien, D.C., Holloway, A.C. and Brien, J.F., 2016, June. Prenatal alcohol exposure increases adiposity, disrupts pancreatic morphology and alters expression of insulin signaling molecules in the guinea pig. Alcoholism – Clinical and Experimental Research (Vol. 40, pp. 310A-310A).
Sanches, J.R., França, L.M., Chagas, V.T., Gaspar, R.S., dos Santos, K.A., Gonçalves, L.M., Sloboda, D.M., Holloway, A.C., Dutra, R.P., Carneiro, E.M. and Cappelli, A.P.G., 2016. Polyphenol-rich extract of Syzygium cumini leaf dually improves peripheral insulin sensitivity and pancreatic islet function in monosodium l-glutamate-induced obese rats. Frontiers in pharmacology, 7
Thomson, E.M., Pal, S., Guénette, J., Wade, M.G., Atlas, E., Holloway, A.C., Williams, A. and Vincent, R., 2016. Ozone inhalation provokes glucocorticoid-dependent and-independent effects on inflammatory and metabolic pathways. Toxicological Sciences, 152(1), pp.17-28.
Wong, M.K., Holloway, A.C. and Hardy, D.B., 2016. Nicotine Directly Induces Endoplasmic Reticulum Stress Response in Rat Placental Trophoblast Giant Cells. Toxicological Sciences, p.kfw019.
Morgan RL, KA Thayer, L Bero, N Bruce, Y Falck-Ytter, D Ghersi, G Guyatt, C Hooijmans, M Langendam, D Mandrioli, RA Mustafa, EA Rehfuess , AA Rooney, B Shea, EK Silbergeld, P Sutton, MS Wolfe, TJ Woodruff, JH Verbeek, AC Holloway , N Santesso and HJ Schünemann. 2016. GRADE: Assessing the quality of evidence in environmental and occupational health. Environ Int 92-93: 611-616.
Akioyamen, L.E., Minhas, H., Holloway, A.C., Taylor, V.H., Akioyamen, N.O. and Sherifali, D., 2016. Effects of depression pharmacotherapy in fertility treatment on conception, birth, and neonatal health: A systematic review. Journal of psychosomatic research, 84, pp.69-80.
Simioni, J., Hutton, E.K., Gunn, E., Holloway, A.C., Stearns, J.C., McDonald, H., Mousseau, A., Schertzer, J.D., Ratcliffe, E.M., Thabane, L. and Surette, M.G., 2016. A comparison of intestinal microbiota in a population of low-risk infants exposed and not exposed to intrapartum antibiotics: The Baby & Microbiota of the Intestine cohort study protocol. BMC pediatrics, 16(1), p.183.
Chaiton, M. and Holloway, A., 2016. Population attributable risk of smoking during pregnancy on obesity in offspring. Can J Public Health, 107(3), p.336.
Avila, C., Holloway, A.C., Hahn, M.K., Morrison, K.M., Restivo, M., Anglin, R. and Taylor, V.H., 2015. An overview of links between obesity and mental health. Current obesity reports, 4(3), pp.303-310.
Pereira, R.D., De Long, N.E., Wang, R.C., Yazdi, F.T., Holloway, A.C. and Raha, S., 2015. Angiogenesis in the placenta: the role of reactive oxygen species signaling. BioMed research international, article 814543.
Nicole, E., Barry, E.J., Pinelli, C., Wood, G.A., Hardy, D.B., Morrison, K.M., Taylor, V.H., Gerstein, H.C. and Holloway, A.C., 2015. Antenatal exposure to the selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor fluoxetine leads to postnatal metabolic and endocrine changes associated with type 2 diabetes in Wistar rats. Toxicology and applied pharmacology, 285(1), pp.32-40.
De Long, N.E., Gutgesell, M.K., Petrik, J.J. and Holloway, A.C., 2015. Fetal Exposure to Sertraline Hydrochloride Impairs Pancreatic ?-Cell Development. Endocrinology, 156(6), pp.1952-1957.
Wong, M.K., Barra, N.G., Alfaidy, N., Hardy, D.B. and Holloway, A.C., 2015. Adverse effects of perinatal nicotine exposure on reproductive outcomes. Reproduction, 150(6), pp.R185-R193.
De Long NE, RA Stepita, VH Taylor and AC Holloway. 2015. Major depressive disorder and diabetes: does serotonin bridge the gap? Curr Diabetes Rev 11: 71-78.
Moore, C.J., DeLong, N.E., Chan, K.A., Holloway, A.C. and Petrik, J.J., 2015. Perinatal administration of a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor induces impairments in reproductive function and follicular dynamics in female rat offspring. Reproductive sciences, pp.1-15.
Tessier, D.R., Raha, S., Holloway, A.C., Yockell-Lelièvre, J., Tayade, C. and Gruslin, A., 2015. Characterization of immune cells and cytokine localization in the rat utero-placental unit mid-to late gestation. Journal of reproductive immunology, 110, pp.89-101.
Moore, C.J., DeLong, N.E., Chan, K.A., Holloway, A.C. and Sloboda, D.M., 2014, March. Perinatal Exposure to a Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitor (SSRI) Induces Changes in Reproductive Function in Female Rat Offspring. Reproductive Sciences (Vol. 21, No. 3, pp. 271A-271A).
Nguyen, P.V., Ashkar, A.A., Holloway, A.C. and Kaushic, C., 2014. Increased susceptibility to primary Hsv-2 infection during early gestation leads to implantation failure and adverse pregnancy outcome in a mouse model. American Journal of Reproductive Immunology, 71, pp.71-72.
De Long, N.E., Barra, N.G., Hardy, D.B. and Holloway, A.C., 2014. Is it safe to use smoking cessation therapeutics during pregnancy? Expert opinion on drug safety, 13(12), pp.1721-1731.
Holloway, A.C., Salomon, A., Soares, M.J., Garnier, V., Raha, S., Sergent, F., Nicholson, C.J., Feige, J.J., Benharouga, M. and Alfaidy, N., 2014. Characterization of the adverse effects of nicotine on placental development: in vivo and in vitro studies. American Journal of Physiology-Endocrinology and Metabolism, 306(4), pp.E443-E456.
De Long, N.E., Barry, E., Pinelli, C., Wood, G., Hardy, D.B., Morrison, K.M., Taylor, V.H., Gerstein, H.C. and Holloway, A.C., 2014. Perinatal Exposure to the Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitor Fluoxetine Results in Hepatic Lipid Accumulation and Inflammation. In Obesity and Inflammation (pp. SUN-0910). Endocrine Society.
Salman, S., Holloway, A.C. and Nurse, C.A., 2014. Chronic opioids regulate KATP channel subunit Kir6. 2 and carbonic anhydrase I and II expression in rat adrenal chromaffin cells via HIF-2? and protein kinase A. American Journal of Physiology-Cell Physiology, 307(3), pp.C266-C277.
Barra, N.G., Palanivel, R., Denou, E., Chew, M.V., Gillgrass, A., Walker, T.D., Kong, J., Richards, C.D., Jordana, M., Collins, S.M. and Trigatti, B.L., 2014. Interleukin-15 modulates adipose tissue by altering mitochondrial mass and activity. PloS one, 9(12), p.e114799.
Hayes, E.K., Tessier, D.R., Percival, M.E., Holloway, A.C., Petrik, J.J., Gruslin, A. and Raha, S., 2014. Trophoblast invasion and blood vessel remodeling are altered in a rat model of lifelong maternal obesity. Reproductive Sciences, 21(5), pp.648-657.
Tessier, D.R., Yockell-Lelievre, J., Raha, S., Holloway, A. and Gruslin, A., 2014, March. Maternal Obesity Influences Uterine Immune Response and Trophoblast Invasion. Reproductive Sciences (Vol. 21, No. 3, pp. 380A-380A).
McNulty, J., Keskar, K., Crankshaw, D.J. and Holloway, A.C., 2014. Discovery of a new class of cinnamyl-triazole as potent and selective inhibitors of aromatase (cytochrome P450 19A1). Bioorganic & medicinal chemistry letters, 24(18), pp.4586-4589.
De Long, N.E., Hyslop, J.R., Raha, S., Hardy, D.B. and Holloway, A.C., 2014. Fluoxetine-induced pancreatic beta cell dysfunction: New insight into the benefits of folic acid in the treatment of depression. Journal of affective disorders, 166, pp.6-13.
Dobson, C.C., Thevasundaram, K., Mongillo, D.L., Winterborn, A., Holloway, A.C., Brien, J.F. and Reynolds, J.N., 2014. Chronic prenatal ethanol exposure alters expression of central and peripheral insulin signaling molecules in adult guinea pig offspring. Alcohol, 48(7), pp.687-693.
Dobson, C.C., Thevasundaram, K., Mongillo, D., Winterborn, A., Holloway, A.C., Brien, J.F. and Reynolds, J.N., 2014. Chronic Prenatal Ethanol Exposure Alters Insulin And Insulin-like Growth Factor Signaling In The Adult Guinea Pig. Alcoholism: Clinical & Experimental Research, 38, p.260A.
Ma, N., Nicholson, C.J., Wong, M., Holloway, A.C. and Hardy, D.B., 2014. Fetal and neonatal exposure to nicotine leads to augmented hepatic and circulating triglycerides in adult male offspring due to increased expression of fatty acid synthase. Toxicology and applied pharmacology, 275(1), pp.1-11.
McNulty, J., Nielsen, A.J., Brown, C.E., DiFrancesco, B.R., Vurgun, N., Nair, J.J., Crankshaw, D.J. and Holloway, A.C., 2013. Investigation of aryl halides as ketone bioisosteres: Refinement of potent and selective inhibitors of human cytochrome P450 19A1 (aromatase). Bioorganic & medicinal chemistry letters, 23(22), pp.6060-6063.
Crankshaw, D.J., Pistilli, M.J., O’Brien, Y.M., Sweeney, E.M., Dockery, P., Holloway, A.C. and Morrison, J.J., 2013. The effects of extracellular calcium-sensing receptor ligands on the contractility of pregnant human myometrium in vitro. Reproductive sciences, p.1933719112468949.
De Long, N., Hyslop, J.R., Nicholson, C.J., Morrison, K.M., Gerstein, H.C. and Holloway, A.C., 2013. Postnatal metabolic and reproductive consequences of fetal and neonatal exposure to the smoking cessation drug bupropion. Reproductive Sciences, 20(10), pp.1156-1161.
Holloway, A., Salomon, A., Raha, S., Sergent, M.F., Nicholson, C.J., Feige, J.J., Benharouga, M. and Alfaidy, N., 2013. Effet de l’exposition à la nicotine sur le développement placentaire: étude in vivo et in vitro. Annales d’Endocrinologie (Vol. 74, No. 4, pp. 262-263).
Behl, M., Rao, D., Aagaard, K., Davidson, T.L., Levin, E.D., Slotkin, T.A., Srinivasan, S., Wallinga, D., White, M.F., Walker, V.R. and Thayer, K.A., 2013. Evaluation of the association between maternal smoking, childhood obesity, and metabolic disorders: a national toxicology program workshop review. Environmental Health Perspectives (Online), 121(2), p.170.
Badv, M., Hosseini, Z., De Long, N., Holloway, A. and Wohl, G., 2013, February. Fetal Exposure to Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors has Long-Term Adverse Effect on Bone Properties in Rats. Journal of Bone and Mineral Research (Vol. 28).
Ma, N.L., Wong, M., Nicholson, C.J., Holloway, A.C. and Hardy, D.B., 2013, March. Maternal Nicotine Exposure Leads to Elevated Triglycerides in Adult Rat Offspring: The Role of the Liver X Receptor (LXR alpha). Reproductive Sciences (Vol. 20, No. S 3, pp. 279A-279A).
Barra, N.G., Chew, M.V., Holloway, A.C. and Ashkar, A.A., 2012. Interleukin-15 treatment improves glucose homeostasis and insulin sensitivity in obese mice. Diabetes, Obesity and Metabolism, 14(2), pp.190-193.
Lopez-Yarto, M., Ruiz-Mirazo, E., Holloway, A.C., Taylor, V.H. and McDonald, S.D., 2012. Do psychiatric medications, especially antidepressants, adversely impact maternal metabolic outcomes? Journal of affective disorders, 141(2), pp.120-129.
Dobson, C.C., Mongillo, D.L., Brien, D.C., Stepita, R., Poklewska-Koziell, M., Winterborn, A., Holloway, A.C., Brien, J.F. and Reynolds, J.N., 2012. Chronic prenatal ethanol exposure increases adiposity and disrupts pancreatic morphology in adult guinea pig offspring. Nutrition & diabetes, 2(12), p.e57.
Hayes, E.K., Lechowicz, A., Petrik, J.J., Storozhuk, Y., Paez-Parent, S., Dai, Q., Samjoo, I.A., Mansell, M., Gruslin, A., Holloway, A.C. and Raha, S., 2012. Adverse fetal and neonatal outcomes associated with a life-long high fat diet: role of altered development of the placental vasculature. PLoS One, 7(3), p.e33370.
Woynillowicz, A.K., Raha, S., Nicholson, C.J. and Holloway, A.C., 2012. The effect of smoking cessation pharmacotherapies on pancreatic beta cell function. Toxicology and applied pharmacology, 265(1), pp.122-127.
Bruin, J.E., Woynillowicz, A.K., Hettinga, B.P., Tarnopolsky, M.A., Morrison, K.M., Gerstein, H.C. and Holloway, A.C., 2012. Maternal antioxidants prevent ?-cell apoptosis and promote formation of dual hormone-expressing endocrine cells in male offspring following fetal and neonatal nicotine exposure. Journal of diabetes, 4(3), pp.297-306.
Pistilli, M.J., Petrik, J.J., Holloway, A.C. and Crankshaw, D.J., 2012. Immunohistochemical and functional studies on calcium-sensing receptors in rat uterine smooth muscle. Clinical and Experimental Pharmacology and Physiology, 39(1), pp.37-42.
De Long, N.E., Stepita, R.A., Taylor, V.H., Morrison, K.M., Gerstein, H.C. and Holloway, A.C., 2012, March. Fetal Exposure to the Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitor Sertraline Results in Impaired Fetal Growth and Pancreatic Development in Wistar Rats. Reproductive Sciences (Vol. 19, No. S 3, pp. 119A-119A).
McNulty, J., Nair, J.J., Vurgun, N., DiFrancesco, B.R., Brown, C.E., Tsoi, B., Crankshaw, D.J. and Holloway, A.C., 2012. Discovery of a novel class of aldol-derived 1, 2, 3-triazoles: Potent and selective inhibitors of human cytochrome P450 19A1 (aromatase). Bioorganic & medicinal chemistry letters, 22(1), pp.718-722.
Raha, S., Taylor, V.H. and Holloway, A.C., 2012. Effect of atypical antipsychotics on fetal growth: is the placenta involved? Journal of pregnancy, 2012.
Alison Holloway
BSc, PhD
Professor, Associate Chair (Research)
Reproductive Biology
Derek Lobb
Reproductive Biology
Research Themes
Midwifery; Retention; Attrition; Cervical physiology; Relaxin; Relaxin receptor
Derek Lobb
Reproductive Biology
Deborah Sloboda
Reproductive Biology
Research Themes
Fetal development; Metabolism; Placenta; Ovarian function; Microbiome; Obesity; Nutrition
Deborah Sloboda
Reproductive Biology
Samantha Wilson
PhD
Assistant Professor
Reproductive Basic Scientist; Reproductive Biology
RESEARCH
Dr. Wilson’s research program focuses on understanding placental development and function, and the etiology of placental dysfunction conditions. The Wilson Pregnancy lab uses multi-omics data (e.g. epigenomics, genomics, transcriptomics) to characterize molecular signatures of the placenta and investigate how molecular changes change over gestation and are associated with placental dysfunction. Another research theme of the lab is developing non-invasive methods to assess placental and pregnancy health. For this theme, we are focused on characterizing cell-free DNA profiles and using machine learning approaches to develop predictive classification models for placental dysfunction conditions. The majority of our work at this time is computational.
Samantha Wilson
PhD
Assistant Professor
Reproductive Basic Scientist; Reproductive Biology
Denis Crankshaw
PhD
Professor Emeritus
Reproductive Biology
BIO
Dr. Crankshaw is a professor emeritus at McMaster University and continues to participate in basic research projects both at McMaster and at the National University of Ireland, Galway.
He is a pharmacologist with interests in basic research and drug discovery. For eight years Dr. Crankshaw was the director of the honours biology and pharmacology program at McMaster University. His BSc from the University of London and PhD from the University of Alberta are both in pharmacology. He also did post-doctoral work at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (ETH Zürich) and has taken research leaves at the University of Manchester, Astra Pain Discovery Unit Sweden, AstraZeneca Pharmaceuticals, Wilmington, DE and the National University of Ireland, Galway.
AWARDS
- McMaster University Students’ Union Award for Teaching Excellence, Faculty of Health Sciences, 1997
- McMaster University Students’ Union Award for Teaching Excellence, Faculty of Health Sciences, 2005
RESEARCH INTERESTS
Dr. Crankshaw’s research interests are currently focused almost exclusively on aspect of human myometrial function:
- Operational and analytical pharmacology of human myometrium in vitro
- Development of novel treatments for preterm labour and post-partum hemorrhage
- Understanding the underlying causes of poor uterine contractility during labour
Research Themes
Human myometrium; Contractility; Preterm labour; Pharmacology; Post partum haemorrhage
PUBLICATIONS
Crankshaw, D.J., Crosby, D.A. and Morrison, J.J., 2017. Effects of the KIR7. 1 Blocker VU590 on Spontaneous and Agonist-Induced Contractions of Human Pregnant Myometrium. Reproductive Sciences, p.1933719116687657.
Crosby, D.A., Crankshaw, D.J. and Morrison, J.J., 2016. 202: Human myometrial in vitro effects of pharmacological agents used in the clinical management of postpartum hemorrhage. American Journal of Obstetrics & Gynecology, 214(1), pp.S122-S123.
Morrison, J.J., Crosby, D.A. and Crankshaw, D.J., 2016. In vitro contractile effects of agents used in the clinical management of postpartum haemorrhage. European journal of pharmacology, 789, pp.328-333.
Morrison, J.J., Sweeney, E.M., Crosby, D.A., Crankshaw, D.J. and Dockery, P., 2016. The mitochondrion and uterine myocyte senescence in human pregnant myometrium: implications for labor and maternal age. American Journal of Obstetrics & Gynecology, 214(1), p.S214.
Crankshaw, D.J., O’Brien, Y.M., Crosby, D.A. and Morrison, J.J., 2015. Maternal age and contractility of human myometrium in pregnancy. Reproductive Sciences, 22(10), pp.1229-1235.
Sweeney, E.M., Scully, D., Black, A., Crankshaw, D.J., O’brien, Y., Dockery, P. and Morrison, J.J., 2014. An analysis of connexin 43 expression in term myometrium and the effect of maternal Bmi and age. Journal of Anatomy, 224(2), p.243.
Crankshaw, D.J., Sweeney, E.M., Walsh, J.M., Dockery, P. and Morrison, J.J., 2014. The influence of smooth muscle content and orientation in dissected human pregnant myometrial strips on contractility measurements. European journal of pharmacology, 738, pp.245-249.
Crankshaw, D.J., Walsh, J.M. and Morrison, J.J., 2014. The effects of methyl palmitate, a putative regulator from perivascular fat, on the contractility of pregnant human myometrium. Life sciences, 116(1), pp.25-30.
Sweeney, E.M., Morrison, J.J., Crankshaw, D.J., O’Brien, Y.M. and Dockery, P., 2014, March. Reduced Mitochondrial Content in Pregnant Myometrium from Older Mothers. Reproductive Sciences (Vol. 21, No. 3, pp. 341A-342A).
Sweeney, E.M., Dockery, P., Crankshaw, D.J., O’brien, Y.M., Walsh, J.M. and Morrison, J.J., 2014. Human uterine lower segment myometrial cell and nuclear volume at term: influence of maternal age. Journal of anatomy, 225(6), pp.625-633.
McNulty, J., Keskar, K., Crankshaw, D.J. and Holloway, A.C., 2014. Discovery of a new class of cinnamyl-triazole as potent and selective inhibitors of aromatase (cytochrome P450 19A1). Bioorganic & medicinal chemistry letters, 24(18), pp.4586-4589.
Sweeney, E.M., Morrison, J.J., Crankshaw, D.J., Walsh, J.M. and Dockery, P., 2014, March. Increased Surface to Volume Ratio in Pregnant Myometrial Smooth Muscle from Older Mothers. Reproductive Sciences (Vol. 21, No. 3, pp. 342A-342A).
Crankshaw, D.J., Pistilli, M.J., O’Brien, Y.M., Sweeney, E.M., Dockery, P., Holloway, A.C. and Morrison, J.J., 2013. The effects of extracellular calcium-sensing receptor ligands on the contractility of pregnant human myometrium in vitro. Reproductive sciences, p.1933719112468949.
McNulty, J., Nielsen, A.J., Brown, C.E., DiFrancesco, B.R., Vurgun, N., Nair, J.J., Crankshaw, D.J. and Holloway, A.C., 2013. Investigation of aryl halides as ketone bioisosteres: Refinement of potent and selective inhibitors of human cytochrome P450 19A1 (aromatase). Bioorganic & medicinal chemistry letters, 23(22), pp.6060-6063.
Sweeney, E.M., Crankshaw, D.J., O’brien, Y., Dockery, P. and Morrison, J.J., 2013. Stereology of human myometrium in pregnancy: influence of maternal body mass index and age. American journal of obstetrics and gynecology, 208(4), pp.324-e1.
Sweeney, E., Crankshaw, D., O’brien, Y., Dockery, P. and Morrison, J., 2013. 308: Stereological analysis of human myometrium in third trimester pregnancy: influence of maternal age, body mass index and parity. American Journal of Obstetrics & Gynecology, 208(1), p.S139.
Pistilli, M.J., Petrik, J.J., Holloway, A.C. and Crankshaw, D.J., 2012. Immunohistochemical and functional studies on calcium?sensing receptors in rat uterine smooth muscle. Clinical and Experimental Pharmacology and Physiology, 39(1), pp.37-42.
McNulty, J., Nair, J.J., Vurgun, N., DiFrancesco, B.R., Brown, C.E., Tsoi, B., Crankshaw, D.J. and Holloway, A.C., 2012. Discovery of a novel class of aldol-derived 1, 2, 3-triazoles: Potent and selective inhibitors of human cytochrome P450 19A1 (aromatase). Bioorganic & medicinal chemistry letters, 22(1), pp.718-722.
Holloway AC, Anger DA, Crankshaw DJ, Wu M, Foster WG. (2007). Atrazine-induced changes in aromatase activity in estrogen sensitive target tissues. J. Appl. Toxicol.,.28: 260-270.
Denis Crankshaw
PhD
Professor Emeritus
Reproductive Biology
BIO
Dr. Crankshaw is a professor emeritus at McMaster University and continues to participate in basic research projects both at McMaster and at the National University of Ireland, Galway.
He is a pharmacologist with interests in basic research and drug discovery. For eight years Dr. Crankshaw was the director of the honours biology and pharmacology program at McMaster University. His BSc from the University of London and PhD from the University of Alberta are both in pharmacology. He also did post-doctoral work at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (ETH Zürich) and has taken research leaves at the University of Manchester, Astra Pain Discovery Unit Sweden, AstraZeneca Pharmaceuticals, Wilmington, DE and the National University of Ireland, Galway.
AWARDS
- McMaster University Students’ Union Award for Teaching Excellence, Faculty of Health Sciences, 1997
- McMaster University Students’ Union Award for Teaching Excellence, Faculty of Health Sciences, 2005
RESEARCH INTERESTS
Dr. Crankshaw’s research interests are currently focused almost exclusively on aspect of human myometrial function:
- Operational and analytical pharmacology of human myometrium in vitro
- Development of novel treatments for preterm labour and post-partum hemorrhage
- Understanding the underlying causes of poor uterine contractility during labour
Research Themes
Human myometrium; Contractility; Preterm labour; Pharmacology; Post partum haemorrhage
PUBLICATIONS
Crankshaw, D.J., Crosby, D.A. and Morrison, J.J., 2017. Effects of the KIR7. 1 Blocker VU590 on Spontaneous and Agonist-Induced Contractions of Human Pregnant Myometrium. Reproductive Sciences, p.1933719116687657.
Crosby, D.A., Crankshaw, D.J. and Morrison, J.J., 2016. 202: Human myometrial in vitro effects of pharmacological agents used in the clinical management of postpartum hemorrhage. American Journal of Obstetrics & Gynecology, 214(1), pp.S122-S123.
Morrison, J.J., Crosby, D.A. and Crankshaw, D.J., 2016. In vitro contractile effects of agents used in the clinical management of postpartum haemorrhage. European journal of pharmacology, 789, pp.328-333.
Morrison, J.J., Sweeney, E.M., Crosby, D.A., Crankshaw, D.J. and Dockery, P., 2016. The mitochondrion and uterine myocyte senescence in human pregnant myometrium: implications for labor and maternal age. American Journal of Obstetrics & Gynecology, 214(1), p.S214.
Crankshaw, D.J., O’Brien, Y.M., Crosby, D.A. and Morrison, J.J., 2015. Maternal age and contractility of human myometrium in pregnancy. Reproductive Sciences, 22(10), pp.1229-1235.
Sweeney, E.M., Scully, D., Black, A., Crankshaw, D.J., O’brien, Y., Dockery, P. and Morrison, J.J., 2014. An analysis of connexin 43 expression in term myometrium and the effect of maternal Bmi and age. Journal of Anatomy, 224(2), p.243.
Crankshaw, D.J., Sweeney, E.M., Walsh, J.M., Dockery, P. and Morrison, J.J., 2014. The influence of smooth muscle content and orientation in dissected human pregnant myometrial strips on contractility measurements. European journal of pharmacology, 738, pp.245-249.
Crankshaw, D.J., Walsh, J.M. and Morrison, J.J., 2014. The effects of methyl palmitate, a putative regulator from perivascular fat, on the contractility of pregnant human myometrium. Life sciences, 116(1), pp.25-30.
Sweeney, E.M., Morrison, J.J., Crankshaw, D.J., O’Brien, Y.M. and Dockery, P., 2014, March. Reduced Mitochondrial Content in Pregnant Myometrium from Older Mothers. Reproductive Sciences (Vol. 21, No. 3, pp. 341A-342A).
Sweeney, E.M., Dockery, P., Crankshaw, D.J., O’brien, Y.M., Walsh, J.M. and Morrison, J.J., 2014. Human uterine lower segment myometrial cell and nuclear volume at term: influence of maternal age. Journal of anatomy, 225(6), pp.625-633.
McNulty, J., Keskar, K., Crankshaw, D.J. and Holloway, A.C., 2014. Discovery of a new class of cinnamyl-triazole as potent and selective inhibitors of aromatase (cytochrome P450 19A1). Bioorganic & medicinal chemistry letters, 24(18), pp.4586-4589.
Sweeney, E.M., Morrison, J.J., Crankshaw, D.J., Walsh, J.M. and Dockery, P., 2014, March. Increased Surface to Volume Ratio in Pregnant Myometrial Smooth Muscle from Older Mothers. Reproductive Sciences (Vol. 21, No. 3, pp. 342A-342A).
Crankshaw, D.J., Pistilli, M.J., O’Brien, Y.M., Sweeney, E.M., Dockery, P., Holloway, A.C. and Morrison, J.J., 2013. The effects of extracellular calcium-sensing receptor ligands on the contractility of pregnant human myometrium in vitro. Reproductive sciences, p.1933719112468949.
McNulty, J., Nielsen, A.J., Brown, C.E., DiFrancesco, B.R., Vurgun, N., Nair, J.J., Crankshaw, D.J. and Holloway, A.C., 2013. Investigation of aryl halides as ketone bioisosteres: Refinement of potent and selective inhibitors of human cytochrome P450 19A1 (aromatase). Bioorganic & medicinal chemistry letters, 23(22), pp.6060-6063.
Sweeney, E.M., Crankshaw, D.J., O’brien, Y., Dockery, P. and Morrison, J.J., 2013. Stereology of human myometrium in pregnancy: influence of maternal body mass index and age. American journal of obstetrics and gynecology, 208(4), pp.324-e1.
Sweeney, E., Crankshaw, D., O’brien, Y., Dockery, P. and Morrison, J., 2013. 308: Stereological analysis of human myometrium in third trimester pregnancy: influence of maternal age, body mass index and parity. American Journal of Obstetrics & Gynecology, 208(1), p.S139.
Pistilli, M.J., Petrik, J.J., Holloway, A.C. and Crankshaw, D.J., 2012. Immunohistochemical and functional studies on calcium?sensing receptors in rat uterine smooth muscle. Clinical and Experimental Pharmacology and Physiology, 39(1), pp.37-42.
McNulty, J., Nair, J.J., Vurgun, N., DiFrancesco, B.R., Brown, C.E., Tsoi, B., Crankshaw, D.J. and Holloway, A.C., 2012. Discovery of a novel class of aldol-derived 1, 2, 3-triazoles: Potent and selective inhibitors of human cytochrome P450 19A1 (aromatase). Bioorganic & medicinal chemistry letters, 22(1), pp.718-722.
Holloway AC, Anger DA, Crankshaw DJ, Wu M, Foster WG. (2007). Atrazine-induced changes in aromatase activity in estrogen sensitive target tissues. J. Appl. Toxicol.,.28: 260-270.
Alison Holloway
BSc, PhD
Professor, Associate Chair (Research)
Reproductive Biology
BIO
Dr. Holloway received her PhD in zoology from the University of Guelph in 1997, followed by a post-doctoral fellowship with Dr. John Challis at the University of Toronto. She then moved to McMaster University in 2001, and is currently a professor in the Department of Obstetrics & Gynecology. Her laboratory studies how exposure to chemical insults during pregnancy can lead to metabolic deficits in the offspring and the mechanisms underlying these effects. The chemicals that are of interest to her laboratory include pharmaceuticals, chemicals we may intentionally expose ourselves to through lifestyle choices such as cigarette smoking and man-made chemicals present in the environment. She is funded by Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) and Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC).
RESEARCH INTERESTS
Concerns about the impact of chemical toxicants in the environment on animal and human health are increasing globally. While there is a growing perception that these chemical insults adversely affect the health of animal and human populations, there is still little information regarding the mechanisms underlying their actions. To date, research attention has focused largely on adverse reproductive effects following exposure to environmental contaminants with estrogenic activity and has, for the most part, not examined other endocrine or metabolic outcomes. However, it has been suggested that exposure to environmental contaminants may also have an important role in the etiology of metabolic disorders including type 2 diabetes and obesity.
The overall goal of my research program is to understand the mechanism(s) by which chemical insults can cause metabolic endocrine disruption in animal and human populations. In particular, I am interested in determining how fetal exposure to chemical insults results in adverse postnatal health outcomes in the offspring including type 2 diabetes and obesity. The chemicals that I am interested in studying include: chemicals we may intentionally expose ourselves to through lifestyle choices such as cigarette smoking or the use of over the counter natural health products and man-made chemicals present in the environment and naturally occurring chemicals in our diet (e.g., plant phytoestrogens). To date, the bulk of my research has focused on the long-term health consequences of fetal and neonatal exposure to constituents of cigarette smoke and smoking cessation pharmacotherapies. Specifically, we have been examining the mechanisms by which fetal and neonatal exposure to nicotine, as delivered by maternal smoking or nicotine replacement therapy use can result in pancreatic beta cell damage at birth and the development of type 2 diabetes in the adult offspring. My laboratory is also investigating the consequences of fetal exposure to over the counter natural health products, psychiatric medications and man-made chemicals present in the environment on the development of metabolic disorders in adulthood.
Research Themes
Early origins of disease; Fetal toxicology, Smoking, Dysmetabolism; Antidepressant use during pregnancy; pancreas development; Environmental contaminants; Endocrine disruption
PUBLICATIONS
Tung EWY, A Kawata, M Rigde, WJ Bowers, D Caldwell, AC Holloway, B Robaire, BF Hales and MG Wade. 2017. Gestational and lactational exposure to an environmentally-relevant mixture of brominated flame retardants: Effects on neurodevelopment and metabolism. Birth Defects Res 109: 497-512.
Barra NG, M Lisyansky, TA VanDuzer, S Raha, AC Holloway and DB Hardy. Maternal nicotine exposure leads to decreased cardiac protein disulfide isomerase and mitochondrial function in male rat offspring. J Appl Tox (JAT-17-0143 Accepted in press).
De Long NE, DB Hardy, N Ma and AC Holloway. Increased incidence of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease in male rat offspring exposed to fluoxetine during fetal and neonatal life involves the NLRP3 inflammasome and augmented de novo hepatic lipogenesis. J Appl Tox (JAT-17-0201 Accepted in press).
De Long, N.E. and Holloway, A.C., 2017. Early-life chemical exposures and risk of metabolic syndrome. Diabetes, Metabolic Syndrome and Obesity: Targets and Therapy, 10, p.101.
Auerbach, S., Filer, D., Reif, D., Walker, V., Holloway, A.C., Schlezinger, J., Srinivasan, S., Svoboda, D., Judson, R., Bucher, J.R. and Thayer, K.A., 2016. Prioritizing environmental chemicals for obesity and diabetes outcomes research: a screening approach using ToxCast™ high-throughput data. Environmental health perspectives, 124(8), p.1141.
Reynolds, J.N., Dobson, C.C., Brien, D.C., Holloway, A.C. and Brien, J.F., 2016, June. Prenatal alcohol exposure increases adiposity, disrupts pancreatic morphology and alters expression of insulin signaling molecules in the guinea pig. Alcoholism – Clinical and Experimental Research (Vol. 40, pp. 310A-310A).
Sanches, J.R., França, L.M., Chagas, V.T., Gaspar, R.S., dos Santos, K.A., Gonçalves, L.M., Sloboda, D.M., Holloway, A.C., Dutra, R.P., Carneiro, E.M. and Cappelli, A.P.G., 2016. Polyphenol-rich extract of Syzygium cumini leaf dually improves peripheral insulin sensitivity and pancreatic islet function in monosodium l-glutamate-induced obese rats. Frontiers in pharmacology, 7
Thomson, E.M., Pal, S., Guénette, J., Wade, M.G., Atlas, E., Holloway, A.C., Williams, A. and Vincent, R., 2016. Ozone inhalation provokes glucocorticoid-dependent and-independent effects on inflammatory and metabolic pathways. Toxicological Sciences, 152(1), pp.17-28.
Wong, M.K., Holloway, A.C. and Hardy, D.B., 2016. Nicotine Directly Induces Endoplasmic Reticulum Stress Response in Rat Placental Trophoblast Giant Cells. Toxicological Sciences, p.kfw019.
Morgan RL, KA Thayer, L Bero, N Bruce, Y Falck-Ytter, D Ghersi, G Guyatt, C Hooijmans, M Langendam, D Mandrioli, RA Mustafa, EA Rehfuess , AA Rooney, B Shea, EK Silbergeld, P Sutton, MS Wolfe, TJ Woodruff, JH Verbeek, AC Holloway , N Santesso and HJ Schünemann. 2016. GRADE: Assessing the quality of evidence in environmental and occupational health. Environ Int 92-93: 611-616.
Akioyamen, L.E., Minhas, H., Holloway, A.C., Taylor, V.H., Akioyamen, N.O. and Sherifali, D., 2016. Effects of depression pharmacotherapy in fertility treatment on conception, birth, and neonatal health: A systematic review. Journal of psychosomatic research, 84, pp.69-80.
Simioni, J., Hutton, E.K., Gunn, E., Holloway, A.C., Stearns, J.C., McDonald, H., Mousseau, A., Schertzer, J.D., Ratcliffe, E.M., Thabane, L. and Surette, M.G., 2016. A comparison of intestinal microbiota in a population of low-risk infants exposed and not exposed to intrapartum antibiotics: The Baby & Microbiota of the Intestine cohort study protocol. BMC pediatrics, 16(1), p.183.
Chaiton, M. and Holloway, A., 2016. Population attributable risk of smoking during pregnancy on obesity in offspring. Can J Public Health, 107(3), p.336.
Avila, C., Holloway, A.C., Hahn, M.K., Morrison, K.M., Restivo, M., Anglin, R. and Taylor, V.H., 2015. An overview of links between obesity and mental health. Current obesity reports, 4(3), pp.303-310.
Pereira, R.D., De Long, N.E., Wang, R.C., Yazdi, F.T., Holloway, A.C. and Raha, S., 2015. Angiogenesis in the placenta: the role of reactive oxygen species signaling. BioMed research international, article 814543.
Nicole, E., Barry, E.J., Pinelli, C., Wood, G.A., Hardy, D.B., Morrison, K.M., Taylor, V.H., Gerstein, H.C. and Holloway, A.C., 2015. Antenatal exposure to the selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor fluoxetine leads to postnatal metabolic and endocrine changes associated with type 2 diabetes in Wistar rats. Toxicology and applied pharmacology, 285(1), pp.32-40.
De Long, N.E., Gutgesell, M.K., Petrik, J.J. and Holloway, A.C., 2015. Fetal Exposure to Sertraline Hydrochloride Impairs Pancreatic ?-Cell Development. Endocrinology, 156(6), pp.1952-1957.
Wong, M.K., Barra, N.G., Alfaidy, N., Hardy, D.B. and Holloway, A.C., 2015. Adverse effects of perinatal nicotine exposure on reproductive outcomes. Reproduction, 150(6), pp.R185-R193.
De Long NE, RA Stepita, VH Taylor and AC Holloway. 2015. Major depressive disorder and diabetes: does serotonin bridge the gap? Curr Diabetes Rev 11: 71-78.
Moore, C.J., DeLong, N.E., Chan, K.A., Holloway, A.C. and Petrik, J.J., 2015. Perinatal administration of a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor induces impairments in reproductive function and follicular dynamics in female rat offspring. Reproductive sciences, pp.1-15.
Tessier, D.R., Raha, S., Holloway, A.C., Yockell-Lelièvre, J., Tayade, C. and Gruslin, A., 2015. Characterization of immune cells and cytokine localization in the rat utero-placental unit mid-to late gestation. Journal of reproductive immunology, 110, pp.89-101.
Moore, C.J., DeLong, N.E., Chan, K.A., Holloway, A.C. and Sloboda, D.M., 2014, March. Perinatal Exposure to a Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitor (SSRI) Induces Changes in Reproductive Function in Female Rat Offspring. Reproductive Sciences (Vol. 21, No. 3, pp. 271A-271A).
Nguyen, P.V., Ashkar, A.A., Holloway, A.C. and Kaushic, C., 2014. Increased susceptibility to primary Hsv-2 infection during early gestation leads to implantation failure and adverse pregnancy outcome in a mouse model. American Journal of Reproductive Immunology, 71, pp.71-72.
De Long, N.E., Barra, N.G., Hardy, D.B. and Holloway, A.C., 2014. Is it safe to use smoking cessation therapeutics during pregnancy? Expert opinion on drug safety, 13(12), pp.1721-1731.
Holloway, A.C., Salomon, A., Soares, M.J., Garnier, V., Raha, S., Sergent, F., Nicholson, C.J., Feige, J.J., Benharouga, M. and Alfaidy, N., 2014. Characterization of the adverse effects of nicotine on placental development: in vivo and in vitro studies. American Journal of Physiology-Endocrinology and Metabolism, 306(4), pp.E443-E456.
De Long, N.E., Barry, E., Pinelli, C., Wood, G., Hardy, D.B., Morrison, K.M., Taylor, V.H., Gerstein, H.C. and Holloway, A.C., 2014. Perinatal Exposure to the Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitor Fluoxetine Results in Hepatic Lipid Accumulation and Inflammation. In Obesity and Inflammation (pp. SUN-0910). Endocrine Society.
Salman, S., Holloway, A.C. and Nurse, C.A., 2014. Chronic opioids regulate KATP channel subunit Kir6. 2 and carbonic anhydrase I and II expression in rat adrenal chromaffin cells via HIF-2? and protein kinase A. American Journal of Physiology-Cell Physiology, 307(3), pp.C266-C277.
Barra, N.G., Palanivel, R., Denou, E., Chew, M.V., Gillgrass, A., Walker, T.D., Kong, J., Richards, C.D., Jordana, M., Collins, S.M. and Trigatti, B.L., 2014. Interleukin-15 modulates adipose tissue by altering mitochondrial mass and activity. PloS one, 9(12), p.e114799.
Hayes, E.K., Tessier, D.R., Percival, M.E., Holloway, A.C., Petrik, J.J., Gruslin, A. and Raha, S., 2014. Trophoblast invasion and blood vessel remodeling are altered in a rat model of lifelong maternal obesity. Reproductive Sciences, 21(5), pp.648-657.
Tessier, D.R., Yockell-Lelievre, J., Raha, S., Holloway, A. and Gruslin, A., 2014, March. Maternal Obesity Influences Uterine Immune Response and Trophoblast Invasion. Reproductive Sciences (Vol. 21, No. 3, pp. 380A-380A).
McNulty, J., Keskar, K., Crankshaw, D.J. and Holloway, A.C., 2014. Discovery of a new class of cinnamyl-triazole as potent and selective inhibitors of aromatase (cytochrome P450 19A1). Bioorganic & medicinal chemistry letters, 24(18), pp.4586-4589.
De Long, N.E., Hyslop, J.R., Raha, S., Hardy, D.B. and Holloway, A.C., 2014. Fluoxetine-induced pancreatic beta cell dysfunction: New insight into the benefits of folic acid in the treatment of depression. Journal of affective disorders, 166, pp.6-13.
Dobson, C.C., Thevasundaram, K., Mongillo, D.L., Winterborn, A., Holloway, A.C., Brien, J.F. and Reynolds, J.N., 2014. Chronic prenatal ethanol exposure alters expression of central and peripheral insulin signaling molecules in adult guinea pig offspring. Alcohol, 48(7), pp.687-693.
Dobson, C.C., Thevasundaram, K., Mongillo, D., Winterborn, A., Holloway, A.C., Brien, J.F. and Reynolds, J.N., 2014. Chronic Prenatal Ethanol Exposure Alters Insulin And Insulin-like Growth Factor Signaling In The Adult Guinea Pig. Alcoholism: Clinical & Experimental Research, 38, p.260A.
Ma, N., Nicholson, C.J., Wong, M., Holloway, A.C. and Hardy, D.B., 2014. Fetal and neonatal exposure to nicotine leads to augmented hepatic and circulating triglycerides in adult male offspring due to increased expression of fatty acid synthase. Toxicology and applied pharmacology, 275(1), pp.1-11.
McNulty, J., Nielsen, A.J., Brown, C.E., DiFrancesco, B.R., Vurgun, N., Nair, J.J., Crankshaw, D.J. and Holloway, A.C., 2013. Investigation of aryl halides as ketone bioisosteres: Refinement of potent and selective inhibitors of human cytochrome P450 19A1 (aromatase). Bioorganic & medicinal chemistry letters, 23(22), pp.6060-6063.
Crankshaw, D.J., Pistilli, M.J., O’Brien, Y.M., Sweeney, E.M., Dockery, P., Holloway, A.C. and Morrison, J.J., 2013. The effects of extracellular calcium-sensing receptor ligands on the contractility of pregnant human myometrium in vitro. Reproductive sciences, p.1933719112468949.
De Long, N., Hyslop, J.R., Nicholson, C.J., Morrison, K.M., Gerstein, H.C. and Holloway, A.C., 2013. Postnatal metabolic and reproductive consequences of fetal and neonatal exposure to the smoking cessation drug bupropion. Reproductive Sciences, 20(10), pp.1156-1161.
Holloway, A., Salomon, A., Raha, S., Sergent, M.F., Nicholson, C.J., Feige, J.J., Benharouga, M. and Alfaidy, N., 2013. Effet de l’exposition à la nicotine sur le développement placentaire: étude in vivo et in vitro. Annales d’Endocrinologie (Vol. 74, No. 4, pp. 262-263).
Behl, M., Rao, D., Aagaard, K., Davidson, T.L., Levin, E.D., Slotkin, T.A., Srinivasan, S., Wallinga, D., White, M.F., Walker, V.R. and Thayer, K.A., 2013. Evaluation of the association between maternal smoking, childhood obesity, and metabolic disorders: a national toxicology program workshop review. Environmental Health Perspectives (Online), 121(2), p.170.
Badv, M., Hosseini, Z., De Long, N., Holloway, A. and Wohl, G., 2013, February. Fetal Exposure to Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors has Long-Term Adverse Effect on Bone Properties in Rats. Journal of Bone and Mineral Research (Vol. 28).
Ma, N.L., Wong, M., Nicholson, C.J., Holloway, A.C. and Hardy, D.B., 2013, March. Maternal Nicotine Exposure Leads to Elevated Triglycerides in Adult Rat Offspring: The Role of the Liver X Receptor (LXR alpha). Reproductive Sciences (Vol. 20, No. S 3, pp. 279A-279A).
Barra, N.G., Chew, M.V., Holloway, A.C. and Ashkar, A.A., 2012. Interleukin-15 treatment improves glucose homeostasis and insulin sensitivity in obese mice. Diabetes, Obesity and Metabolism, 14(2), pp.190-193.
Lopez-Yarto, M., Ruiz-Mirazo, E., Holloway, A.C., Taylor, V.H. and McDonald, S.D., 2012. Do psychiatric medications, especially antidepressants, adversely impact maternal metabolic outcomes? Journal of affective disorders, 141(2), pp.120-129.
Dobson, C.C., Mongillo, D.L., Brien, D.C., Stepita, R., Poklewska-Koziell, M., Winterborn, A., Holloway, A.C., Brien, J.F. and Reynolds, J.N., 2012. Chronic prenatal ethanol exposure increases adiposity and disrupts pancreatic morphology in adult guinea pig offspring. Nutrition & diabetes, 2(12), p.e57.
Hayes, E.K., Lechowicz, A., Petrik, J.J., Storozhuk, Y., Paez-Parent, S., Dai, Q., Samjoo, I.A., Mansell, M., Gruslin, A., Holloway, A.C. and Raha, S., 2012. Adverse fetal and neonatal outcomes associated with a life-long high fat diet: role of altered development of the placental vasculature. PLoS One, 7(3), p.e33370.
Woynillowicz, A.K., Raha, S., Nicholson, C.J. and Holloway, A.C., 2012. The effect of smoking cessation pharmacotherapies on pancreatic beta cell function. Toxicology and applied pharmacology, 265(1), pp.122-127.
Bruin, J.E., Woynillowicz, A.K., Hettinga, B.P., Tarnopolsky, M.A., Morrison, K.M., Gerstein, H.C. and Holloway, A.C., 2012. Maternal antioxidants prevent ?-cell apoptosis and promote formation of dual hormone-expressing endocrine cells in male offspring following fetal and neonatal nicotine exposure. Journal of diabetes, 4(3), pp.297-306.
Pistilli, M.J., Petrik, J.J., Holloway, A.C. and Crankshaw, D.J., 2012. Immunohistochemical and functional studies on calcium-sensing receptors in rat uterine smooth muscle. Clinical and Experimental Pharmacology and Physiology, 39(1), pp.37-42.
De Long, N.E., Stepita, R.A., Taylor, V.H., Morrison, K.M., Gerstein, H.C. and Holloway, A.C., 2012, March. Fetal Exposure to the Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitor Sertraline Results in Impaired Fetal Growth and Pancreatic Development in Wistar Rats. Reproductive Sciences (Vol. 19, No. S 3, pp. 119A-119A).
McNulty, J., Nair, J.J., Vurgun, N., DiFrancesco, B.R., Brown, C.E., Tsoi, B., Crankshaw, D.J. and Holloway, A.C., 2012. Discovery of a novel class of aldol-derived 1, 2, 3-triazoles: Potent and selective inhibitors of human cytochrome P450 19A1 (aromatase). Bioorganic & medicinal chemistry letters, 22(1), pp.718-722.
Raha, S., Taylor, V.H. and Holloway, A.C., 2012. Effect of atypical antipsychotics on fetal growth: is the placenta involved? Journal of pregnancy, 2012.
Alison Holloway
BSc, PhD
Professor, Associate Chair (Research)
Reproductive Biology
BIO
Dr. Holloway received her PhD in zoology from the University of Guelph in 1997, followed by a post-doctoral fellowship with Dr. John Challis at the University of Toronto. She then moved to McMaster University in 2001, and is currently a professor in the Department of Obstetrics & Gynecology. Her laboratory studies how exposure to chemical insults during pregnancy can lead to metabolic deficits in the offspring and the mechanisms underlying these effects. The chemicals that are of interest to her laboratory include pharmaceuticals, chemicals we may intentionally expose ourselves to through lifestyle choices such as cigarette smoking and man-made chemicals present in the environment. She is funded by Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) and Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC).
RESEARCH INTERESTS
Concerns about the impact of chemical toxicants in the environment on animal and human health are increasing globally. While there is a growing perception that these chemical insults adversely affect the health of animal and human populations, there is still little information regarding the mechanisms underlying their actions. To date, research attention has focused largely on adverse reproductive effects following exposure to environmental contaminants with estrogenic activity and has, for the most part, not examined other endocrine or metabolic outcomes. However, it has been suggested that exposure to environmental contaminants may also have an important role in the etiology of metabolic disorders including type 2 diabetes and obesity.
The overall goal of my research program is to understand the mechanism(s) by which chemical insults can cause metabolic endocrine disruption in animal and human populations. In particular, I am interested in determining how fetal exposure to chemical insults results in adverse postnatal health outcomes in the offspring including type 2 diabetes and obesity. The chemicals that I am interested in studying include: chemicals we may intentionally expose ourselves to through lifestyle choices such as cigarette smoking or the use of over the counter natural health products and man-made chemicals present in the environment and naturally occurring chemicals in our diet (e.g., plant phytoestrogens). To date, the bulk of my research has focused on the long-term health consequences of fetal and neonatal exposure to constituents of cigarette smoke and smoking cessation pharmacotherapies. Specifically, we have been examining the mechanisms by which fetal and neonatal exposure to nicotine, as delivered by maternal smoking or nicotine replacement therapy use can result in pancreatic beta cell damage at birth and the development of type 2 diabetes in the adult offspring. My laboratory is also investigating the consequences of fetal exposure to over the counter natural health products, psychiatric medications and man-made chemicals present in the environment on the development of metabolic disorders in adulthood.
Research Themes
Early origins of disease; Fetal toxicology, Smoking, Dysmetabolism; Antidepressant use during pregnancy; pancreas development; Environmental contaminants; Endocrine disruption
PUBLICATIONS
Tung EWY, A Kawata, M Rigde, WJ Bowers, D Caldwell, AC Holloway, B Robaire, BF Hales and MG Wade. 2017. Gestational and lactational exposure to an environmentally-relevant mixture of brominated flame retardants: Effects on neurodevelopment and metabolism. Birth Defects Res 109: 497-512.
Barra NG, M Lisyansky, TA VanDuzer, S Raha, AC Holloway and DB Hardy. Maternal nicotine exposure leads to decreased cardiac protein disulfide isomerase and mitochondrial function in male rat offspring. J Appl Tox (JAT-17-0143 Accepted in press).
De Long NE, DB Hardy, N Ma and AC Holloway. Increased incidence of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease in male rat offspring exposed to fluoxetine during fetal and neonatal life involves the NLRP3 inflammasome and augmented de novo hepatic lipogenesis. J Appl Tox (JAT-17-0201 Accepted in press).
De Long, N.E. and Holloway, A.C., 2017. Early-life chemical exposures and risk of metabolic syndrome. Diabetes, Metabolic Syndrome and Obesity: Targets and Therapy, 10, p.101.
Auerbach, S., Filer, D., Reif, D., Walker, V., Holloway, A.C., Schlezinger, J., Srinivasan, S., Svoboda, D., Judson, R., Bucher, J.R. and Thayer, K.A., 2016. Prioritizing environmental chemicals for obesity and diabetes outcomes research: a screening approach using ToxCast™ high-throughput data. Environmental health perspectives, 124(8), p.1141.
Reynolds, J.N., Dobson, C.C., Brien, D.C., Holloway, A.C. and Brien, J.F., 2016, June. Prenatal alcohol exposure increases adiposity, disrupts pancreatic morphology and alters expression of insulin signaling molecules in the guinea pig. Alcoholism – Clinical and Experimental Research (Vol. 40, pp. 310A-310A).
Sanches, J.R., França, L.M., Chagas, V.T., Gaspar, R.S., dos Santos, K.A., Gonçalves, L.M., Sloboda, D.M., Holloway, A.C., Dutra, R.P., Carneiro, E.M. and Cappelli, A.P.G., 2016. Polyphenol-rich extract of Syzygium cumini leaf dually improves peripheral insulin sensitivity and pancreatic islet function in monosodium l-glutamate-induced obese rats. Frontiers in pharmacology, 7
Thomson, E.M., Pal, S., Guénette, J., Wade, M.G., Atlas, E., Holloway, A.C., Williams, A. and Vincent, R., 2016. Ozone inhalation provokes glucocorticoid-dependent and-independent effects on inflammatory and metabolic pathways. Toxicological Sciences, 152(1), pp.17-28.
Wong, M.K., Holloway, A.C. and Hardy, D.B., 2016. Nicotine Directly Induces Endoplasmic Reticulum Stress Response in Rat Placental Trophoblast Giant Cells. Toxicological Sciences, p.kfw019.
Morgan RL, KA Thayer, L Bero, N Bruce, Y Falck-Ytter, D Ghersi, G Guyatt, C Hooijmans, M Langendam, D Mandrioli, RA Mustafa, EA Rehfuess , AA Rooney, B Shea, EK Silbergeld, P Sutton, MS Wolfe, TJ Woodruff, JH Verbeek, AC Holloway , N Santesso and HJ Schünemann. 2016. GRADE: Assessing the quality of evidence in environmental and occupational health. Environ Int 92-93: 611-616.
Akioyamen, L.E., Minhas, H., Holloway, A.C., Taylor, V.H., Akioyamen, N.O. and Sherifali, D., 2016. Effects of depression pharmacotherapy in fertility treatment on conception, birth, and neonatal health: A systematic review. Journal of psychosomatic research, 84, pp.69-80.
Simioni, J., Hutton, E.K., Gunn, E., Holloway, A.C., Stearns, J.C., McDonald, H., Mousseau, A., Schertzer, J.D., Ratcliffe, E.M., Thabane, L. and Surette, M.G., 2016. A comparison of intestinal microbiota in a population of low-risk infants exposed and not exposed to intrapartum antibiotics: The Baby & Microbiota of the Intestine cohort study protocol. BMC pediatrics, 16(1), p.183.
Chaiton, M. and Holloway, A., 2016. Population attributable risk of smoking during pregnancy on obesity in offspring. Can J Public Health, 107(3), p.336.
Avila, C., Holloway, A.C., Hahn, M.K., Morrison, K.M., Restivo, M., Anglin, R. and Taylor, V.H., 2015. An overview of links between obesity and mental health. Current obesity reports, 4(3), pp.303-310.
Pereira, R.D., De Long, N.E., Wang, R.C., Yazdi, F.T., Holloway, A.C. and Raha, S., 2015. Angiogenesis in the placenta: the role of reactive oxygen species signaling. BioMed research international, article 814543.
Nicole, E., Barry, E.J., Pinelli, C., Wood, G.A., Hardy, D.B., Morrison, K.M., Taylor, V.H., Gerstein, H.C. and Holloway, A.C., 2015. Antenatal exposure to the selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor fluoxetine leads to postnatal metabolic and endocrine changes associated with type 2 diabetes in Wistar rats. Toxicology and applied pharmacology, 285(1), pp.32-40.
De Long, N.E., Gutgesell, M.K., Petrik, J.J. and Holloway, A.C., 2015. Fetal Exposure to Sertraline Hydrochloride Impairs Pancreatic ?-Cell Development. Endocrinology, 156(6), pp.1952-1957.
Wong, M.K., Barra, N.G., Alfaidy, N., Hardy, D.B. and Holloway, A.C., 2015. Adverse effects of perinatal nicotine exposure on reproductive outcomes. Reproduction, 150(6), pp.R185-R193.
De Long NE, RA Stepita, VH Taylor and AC Holloway. 2015. Major depressive disorder and diabetes: does serotonin bridge the gap? Curr Diabetes Rev 11: 71-78.
Moore, C.J., DeLong, N.E., Chan, K.A., Holloway, A.C. and Petrik, J.J., 2015. Perinatal administration of a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor induces impairments in reproductive function and follicular dynamics in female rat offspring. Reproductive sciences, pp.1-15.
Tessier, D.R., Raha, S., Holloway, A.C., Yockell-Lelièvre, J., Tayade, C. and Gruslin, A., 2015. Characterization of immune cells and cytokine localization in the rat utero-placental unit mid-to late gestation. Journal of reproductive immunology, 110, pp.89-101.
Moore, C.J., DeLong, N.E., Chan, K.A., Holloway, A.C. and Sloboda, D.M., 2014, March. Perinatal Exposure to a Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitor (SSRI) Induces Changes in Reproductive Function in Female Rat Offspring. Reproductive Sciences (Vol. 21, No. 3, pp. 271A-271A).
Nguyen, P.V., Ashkar, A.A., Holloway, A.C. and Kaushic, C., 2014. Increased susceptibility to primary Hsv-2 infection during early gestation leads to implantation failure and adverse pregnancy outcome in a mouse model. American Journal of Reproductive Immunology, 71, pp.71-72.
De Long, N.E., Barra, N.G., Hardy, D.B. and Holloway, A.C., 2014. Is it safe to use smoking cessation therapeutics during pregnancy? Expert opinion on drug safety, 13(12), pp.1721-1731.
Holloway, A.C., Salomon, A., Soares, M.J., Garnier, V., Raha, S., Sergent, F., Nicholson, C.J., Feige, J.J., Benharouga, M. and Alfaidy, N., 2014. Characterization of the adverse effects of nicotine on placental development: in vivo and in vitro studies. American Journal of Physiology-Endocrinology and Metabolism, 306(4), pp.E443-E456.
De Long, N.E., Barry, E., Pinelli, C., Wood, G., Hardy, D.B., Morrison, K.M., Taylor, V.H., Gerstein, H.C. and Holloway, A.C., 2014. Perinatal Exposure to the Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitor Fluoxetine Results in Hepatic Lipid Accumulation and Inflammation. In Obesity and Inflammation (pp. SUN-0910). Endocrine Society.
Salman, S., Holloway, A.C. and Nurse, C.A., 2014. Chronic opioids regulate KATP channel subunit Kir6. 2 and carbonic anhydrase I and II expression in rat adrenal chromaffin cells via HIF-2? and protein kinase A. American Journal of Physiology-Cell Physiology, 307(3), pp.C266-C277.
Barra, N.G., Palanivel, R., Denou, E., Chew, M.V., Gillgrass, A., Walker, T.D., Kong, J., Richards, C.D., Jordana, M., Collins, S.M. and Trigatti, B.L., 2014. Interleukin-15 modulates adipose tissue by altering mitochondrial mass and activity. PloS one, 9(12), p.e114799.
Hayes, E.K., Tessier, D.R., Percival, M.E., Holloway, A.C., Petrik, J.J., Gruslin, A. and Raha, S., 2014. Trophoblast invasion and blood vessel remodeling are altered in a rat model of lifelong maternal obesity. Reproductive Sciences, 21(5), pp.648-657.
Tessier, D.R., Yockell-Lelievre, J., Raha, S., Holloway, A. and Gruslin, A., 2014, March. Maternal Obesity Influences Uterine Immune Response and Trophoblast Invasion. Reproductive Sciences (Vol. 21, No. 3, pp. 380A-380A).
McNulty, J., Keskar, K., Crankshaw, D.J. and Holloway, A.C., 2014. Discovery of a new class of cinnamyl-triazole as potent and selective inhibitors of aromatase (cytochrome P450 19A1). Bioorganic & medicinal chemistry letters, 24(18), pp.4586-4589.
De Long, N.E., Hyslop, J.R., Raha, S., Hardy, D.B. and Holloway, A.C., 2014. Fluoxetine-induced pancreatic beta cell dysfunction: New insight into the benefits of folic acid in the treatment of depression. Journal of affective disorders, 166, pp.6-13.
Dobson, C.C., Thevasundaram, K., Mongillo, D.L., Winterborn, A., Holloway, A.C., Brien, J.F. and Reynolds, J.N., 2014. Chronic prenatal ethanol exposure alters expression of central and peripheral insulin signaling molecules in adult guinea pig offspring. Alcohol, 48(7), pp.687-693.
Dobson, C.C., Thevasundaram, K., Mongillo, D., Winterborn, A., Holloway, A.C., Brien, J.F. and Reynolds, J.N., 2014. Chronic Prenatal Ethanol Exposure Alters Insulin And Insulin-like Growth Factor Signaling In The Adult Guinea Pig. Alcoholism: Clinical & Experimental Research, 38, p.260A.
Ma, N., Nicholson, C.J., Wong, M., Holloway, A.C. and Hardy, D.B., 2014. Fetal and neonatal exposure to nicotine leads to augmented hepatic and circulating triglycerides in adult male offspring due to increased expression of fatty acid synthase. Toxicology and applied pharmacology, 275(1), pp.1-11.
McNulty, J., Nielsen, A.J., Brown, C.E., DiFrancesco, B.R., Vurgun, N., Nair, J.J., Crankshaw, D.J. and Holloway, A.C., 2013. Investigation of aryl halides as ketone bioisosteres: Refinement of potent and selective inhibitors of human cytochrome P450 19A1 (aromatase). Bioorganic & medicinal chemistry letters, 23(22), pp.6060-6063.
Crankshaw, D.J., Pistilli, M.J., O’Brien, Y.M., Sweeney, E.M., Dockery, P., Holloway, A.C. and Morrison, J.J., 2013. The effects of extracellular calcium-sensing receptor ligands on the contractility of pregnant human myometrium in vitro. Reproductive sciences, p.1933719112468949.
De Long, N., Hyslop, J.R., Nicholson, C.J., Morrison, K.M., Gerstein, H.C. and Holloway, A.C., 2013. Postnatal metabolic and reproductive consequences of fetal and neonatal exposure to the smoking cessation drug bupropion. Reproductive Sciences, 20(10), pp.1156-1161.
Holloway, A., Salomon, A., Raha, S., Sergent, M.F., Nicholson, C.J., Feige, J.J., Benharouga, M. and Alfaidy, N., 2013. Effet de l’exposition à la nicotine sur le développement placentaire: étude in vivo et in vitro. Annales d’Endocrinologie (Vol. 74, No. 4, pp. 262-263).
Behl, M., Rao, D., Aagaard, K., Davidson, T.L., Levin, E.D., Slotkin, T.A., Srinivasan, S., Wallinga, D., White, M.F., Walker, V.R. and Thayer, K.A., 2013. Evaluation of the association between maternal smoking, childhood obesity, and metabolic disorders: a national toxicology program workshop review. Environmental Health Perspectives (Online), 121(2), p.170.
Badv, M., Hosseini, Z., De Long, N., Holloway, A. and Wohl, G., 2013, February. Fetal Exposure to Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors has Long-Term Adverse Effect on Bone Properties in Rats. Journal of Bone and Mineral Research (Vol. 28).
Ma, N.L., Wong, M., Nicholson, C.J., Holloway, A.C. and Hardy, D.B., 2013, March. Maternal Nicotine Exposure Leads to Elevated Triglycerides in Adult Rat Offspring: The Role of the Liver X Receptor (LXR alpha). Reproductive Sciences (Vol. 20, No. S 3, pp. 279A-279A).
Barra, N.G., Chew, M.V., Holloway, A.C. and Ashkar, A.A., 2012. Interleukin-15 treatment improves glucose homeostasis and insulin sensitivity in obese mice. Diabetes, Obesity and Metabolism, 14(2), pp.190-193.
Lopez-Yarto, M., Ruiz-Mirazo, E., Holloway, A.C., Taylor, V.H. and McDonald, S.D., 2012. Do psychiatric medications, especially antidepressants, adversely impact maternal metabolic outcomes? Journal of affective disorders, 141(2), pp.120-129.
Dobson, C.C., Mongillo, D.L., Brien, D.C., Stepita, R., Poklewska-Koziell, M., Winterborn, A., Holloway, A.C., Brien, J.F. and Reynolds, J.N., 2012. Chronic prenatal ethanol exposure increases adiposity and disrupts pancreatic morphology in adult guinea pig offspring. Nutrition & diabetes, 2(12), p.e57.
Hayes, E.K., Lechowicz, A., Petrik, J.J., Storozhuk, Y., Paez-Parent, S., Dai, Q., Samjoo, I.A., Mansell, M., Gruslin, A., Holloway, A.C. and Raha, S., 2012. Adverse fetal and neonatal outcomes associated with a life-long high fat diet: role of altered development of the placental vasculature. PLoS One, 7(3), p.e33370.
Woynillowicz, A.K., Raha, S., Nicholson, C.J. and Holloway, A.C., 2012. The effect of smoking cessation pharmacotherapies on pancreatic beta cell function. Toxicology and applied pharmacology, 265(1), pp.122-127.
Bruin, J.E., Woynillowicz, A.K., Hettinga, B.P., Tarnopolsky, M.A., Morrison, K.M., Gerstein, H.C. and Holloway, A.C., 2012. Maternal antioxidants prevent ?-cell apoptosis and promote formation of dual hormone-expressing endocrine cells in male offspring following fetal and neonatal nicotine exposure. Journal of diabetes, 4(3), pp.297-306.
Pistilli, M.J., Petrik, J.J., Holloway, A.C. and Crankshaw, D.J., 2012. Immunohistochemical and functional studies on calcium-sensing receptors in rat uterine smooth muscle. Clinical and Experimental Pharmacology and Physiology, 39(1), pp.37-42.
De Long, N.E., Stepita, R.A., Taylor, V.H., Morrison, K.M., Gerstein, H.C. and Holloway, A.C., 2012, March. Fetal Exposure to the Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitor Sertraline Results in Impaired Fetal Growth and Pancreatic Development in Wistar Rats. Reproductive Sciences (Vol. 19, No. S 3, pp. 119A-119A).
McNulty, J., Nair, J.J., Vurgun, N., DiFrancesco, B.R., Brown, C.E., Tsoi, B., Crankshaw, D.J. and Holloway, A.C., 2012. Discovery of a novel class of aldol-derived 1, 2, 3-triazoles: Potent and selective inhibitors of human cytochrome P450 19A1 (aromatase). Bioorganic & medicinal chemistry letters, 22(1), pp.718-722.
Raha, S., Taylor, V.H. and Holloway, A.C., 2012. Effect of atypical antipsychotics on fetal growth: is the placenta involved? Journal of pregnancy, 2012.
Derek Lobb
Reproductive Biology
Research Themes
Midwifery; Retention; Attrition; Cervical physiology; Relaxin; Relaxin receptor
Derek Lobb
Reproductive Biology
Research Themes
Midwifery; Retention; Attrition; Cervical physiology; Relaxin; Relaxin receptor
Deborah Sloboda
Reproductive Biology
Research Themes
Fetal development; Metabolism; Placenta; Ovarian function; Microbiome; Obesity; Nutrition
Deborah Sloboda
Reproductive Biology
Research Themes
Fetal development; Metabolism; Placenta; Ovarian function; Microbiome; Obesity; Nutrition
Samantha Wilson
PhD
Assistant Professor
Reproductive Basic Scientist; Reproductive Biology
RESEARCH
Dr. Wilson’s research program focuses on understanding placental development and function, and the etiology of placental dysfunction conditions. The Wilson Pregnancy lab uses multi-omics data (e.g. epigenomics, genomics, transcriptomics) to characterize molecular signatures of the placenta and investigate how molecular changes change over gestation and are associated with placental dysfunction. Another research theme of the lab is developing non-invasive methods to assess placental and pregnancy health. For this theme, we are focused on characterizing cell-free DNA profiles and using machine learning approaches to develop predictive classification models for placental dysfunction conditions. The majority of our work at this time is computational.
Samantha Wilson
PhD
Assistant Professor
Reproductive Basic Scientist; Reproductive Biology
RESEARCH
Dr. Wilson’s research program focuses on understanding placental development and function, and the etiology of placental dysfunction conditions. The Wilson Pregnancy lab uses multi-omics data (e.g. epigenomics, genomics, transcriptomics) to characterize molecular signatures of the placenta and investigate how molecular changes change over gestation and are associated with placental dysfunction. Another research theme of the lab is developing non-invasive methods to assess placental and pregnancy health. For this theme, we are focused on characterizing cell-free DNA profiles and using machine learning approaches to develop predictive classification models for placental dysfunction conditions. The majority of our work at this time is computational.