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Portrait of Jennifer Doll

Jennifer A. Doll, PhD

  • Head of School, School of Biomedical Sciences & Health Care Administration
  • Associate Dean for Academic Affairs
  • Associate Professor, Biomedical Sciences

Education

Postdoctoral Fellowship Dept. of Microbiology-Immunology Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine 2003
Ph D Molecular Genetics Washington University 1997
MS Molecular Biology Loyola University 1992
BS Biology Rockhurst College 1990

Speaker Topics

  • Cancer biology
  • Prostate cancer
  • Obesity and dietary fats in prostate cancer
  • Angiogenesis

Interests & Expertise

Jennifer Doll’s research is centered around prostate cancer (PCa) and the effects of obesity and a high fat diet on disease progression. Her work has evolved around the study of two angiogenesis inhibitors, pigment epithelium-derived factor (PEDF) and thrombospondin-1 (TSP-1). Angiogenesis, the growth of new blood vessels from the existing vasculature, is a necessary step for the progressive growth of tumors. Both TSP-1 and PEDF are expressed in the normal prostate but, in PCa patient tissues, expression is decreased or absent, thus suggesting a role in disease progression.

Interestingly, several lines of data suggest that both of these proteins also function in regulating lipid metabolism. This is of particular interest in PCa as a high fat diet and obesity have been consistently associated with more aggressive disease and increased risk of death from PCa. However, the mechanisms of this association remain unclear.

Doll’s research is focused on elucidating these functional mechanism(s) and specifically delineating the role of TSP-1 and PEDF in regulating lipid metabolism in the prostate. Understanding the molecular pathways stimulated in PCa cells by obesity and dietary fats will allow the rational design of novel therapies for treatment as well as new strategies for chemoprevention.

Selected Publications

Helenowski, I. B., Demirtas, H., Doll, J. A., Jovanovic, B. D., Gurley, M. J., Trapp, L. P., & Kuzel, T. M. (2016). The effects of the order of multiple imputation in subset analysis examining the association between body mass index (BMI) and transrectal ultrasound prostate weight. Convergent Science Physical Oncology, 2(3), 035003.
Iordanescu, G., Brendler, C., Crawford, S. E., Wyrwicz, A. M., Venkatasubramanian, P. N., & Doll, J. A. (2015, September). MRS measured fatty acid composition of periprostatic adipose tissue correlates with pathological measures of prostate cancer aggressiveness. Journal of magnetic resonance imaging : JMRI, 42(3), 651-7.
Vekatasubraminian, P. N., Brendler, C. B., Plunikett, B. A., Crawford, S. E., Fitchev, P. S., Morgan, G., Cornwell, M. L., McGuire, M. S., Wyrwicz, A. M., & Doll, J. A. (2014). Periprostatic adipose tissue from obese prostate cancer patients promotes tumor and endothelial cell proliferation: A functional and mr imaging pilot study. The Prostate, 74(3), 326-335.
Gattu, A. K., Birkenfeld, A. L., Iwakiri, Y., Jay, S., Saltzman, M., Doll, J. A., Protiva, P., Samuel, V. T., Crawford, S. E., & Chung, C. (2014). Pigment epithelium-derived factor (PEDF) suppresses IL-1β to improve hepatocyte insulin signaling. Endocrinology, 155(4), 1373-1785.
Principe, D. R., Doll, J. A., Bauer, J., Jung, B., Munshi, H. G., Bartholin, L., Pasche, B., Lee, C., & Grippo, P. J. (2014). TGF-β: Duality of function between tumor prevention and carcinogenesis. J Natl Cancer Inst, 106(2), djt369.
Yu, N., Kozlowski, J. M., Park II, Chen, L., Zheng, Q., Xu, D., Doll, J. A., Crawford, S. E., Brendler, C. B., & Lee, C. (2010). Over-expression of transforming growth factor β1 in malignant prostate cells is partly caused by a runaway of TGF-β1 auto-induction mediated through a defective recruitment of protein phosphatase 2A by TGF-β type I receptor. Urology, 76(6), 1519.e8-13.
Halin, S., Rudolfsson, S. H., Doll, J. A., Crawford, S. E., Wikstrom, P., & Bergh, A. (2010). Pigment epithelium-derived factor a prostate tumor suppressor with diverse biological effects in the microenvironment. Neoplasia, 12(4), 336-345.
Fitchev, P. P., Wcislak, S. M., Lee, C., Bergh, A., Brendler, C. B., Stellmach, V. M., Crawford, S. E., Mavroudis, C. D., Cornwell, M. L., & Doll, J. A. (2010). Thrombospondin-1 regulates the normal prostate in vivo through angiogenesis and tgf-beta activation. Lab. Invest, 90(7), 1078-1090.
Chung, C., Shugrue, C., Nagar, A., Doll, J. A., Cornwell, M., Gattu, A., Kolodecik, T., Pandol, S., & Gorelick, F. (2009). Ethanol exposure depletes hepatic pigment epithelium-derived factor (PEDF), a novel lipid regulator in the liver. Gastroenterology, 136(1), 331-340.
Chung, C., Doll, J. A., Gattu, A., Shugrue, C., Cornwell, C., Fitchev, P., & Crawford, S. E. (2008). Anti-angiogenic pigment epithelium-derived factor regulates hepatocyte triglyceride content through adipose triglyceride lipase (ATGL). J. Hepatol, 48(3), 471-478.
Plunkett, B. A., Fitchev, P., Doll, J. A., Gerber, S. E., Cornwell, M., Greenstein, E. P., & Crawford, S. E. (2008). Decreased expression of pigment epithelium derived factor (PEDF), an inhibitor of angiogenesis, in placentas of unexplained stillbirths. Reprod Biol, 8(2), 107-120.
Chung, C., Doll, J. A., Stellmach, V. M., Gonzales, J., Surapureddi, S., Cornwell, M., Reddy, J. K., & Crawford, S. E. (2008). Pigment epithelium-derived factor is an angiogenesis and lipid regulator that activates peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor alpha. Adv Exp Med Biol, 617, 591-597.
Signaevsky, M., Hobbs, J., Doll, J. A., Liu, N., & Soff, G. A. (2008). Role of alternatively spliced tissue factor in pancreatic cancer growth and angiogenesis. Semin Thromb Hemost, 34(2), 161-169.
Doll, J. A., Hobbs, J. E., & Soff, G. A. (2007). Role of apoptosis in anti-angiogenic cancer therapies. Apoptosis and Senescence in Cancer Chemotherapy and Radiotherapy.
Hobbs, J. E., Zakarija, A., Cundiff, D. L., Doll, J. A., Hymen, E., Cornwell, M., Craford, S. E., & Soff, G. A. (2007). Alternatively spliced human tissue factor promotes tumor growth and angiogenesis in a pancreatic cancer tumor model. Thrombosis Res, 120(Suppl 2), S13-21.

Honors & Awards

Invited talk (2010, September) Prostate Cancer Foundation’s Annual Retreat.
Invitation (poster presentation with oral summary) (2009, November) NCI Translational Science Meeting.
Invitation (poster presentation) (2007, September) DOD prostate cancer IMPaCT meeting.
Travel Grant Award (2001) American Association for Cancer Research.
Travel Grant Award (1998) American Association for Cancer Research.
Travel Grant Award (1998) National Institutes of Health (NIH).
Grant in Aid of Research (1995) Sigma Xi Research Society.
Travel Grant Award (1994) American Association for Cancer Research.
Graduate Research Fellowship (1992) Loyola University.
Grant Aid of Research (1992) Sigma Xi Research Society.
Barbara Wynne Outstanding Biology Student Award (1990) Rockhurst College.
Honors and Magna Cum Laude (1990) Rockhurst College.