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Dr. Thomas M. Petro
Title: Professor
Address
Room: 24I
UNMC College of Dentistry
40th and Holdrege
Box 830740
Lincoln, NE 68583-0740
Oral Biology Department
Bioregulation Group
Telephone: (402) 472-1327
Fax: (402) 472-2551
email: tpetro@unmc.edu
Education:
- B.S. (Microbiology), Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio
- M.S. (Microbiology), Miami University, Oxford, Ohio
- Ph.D. (Immunology/Microbiology), Miami University, Oxford, Ohio
- Postdoc (Immunology/Nutrition), Purdue University, W. Lafayette, Indiana
Teaching Responsibilities:
- Course Instructor, A Review of Biomedical/Dental Sciences (OB471)
- Course Director, Fundamentals of Microbiology (OB 514)
- Course Director, Immunology (OB 325)
- Course Director, Immunology and Microbiology of Oral Infectious Disease (OBIO 866)
Research Interests:
- IL-12 family of cytokines and autoimmune inflammatory disease; molecular immunobiology
Grants:
- NIH CoBRE Grant (P20 RR18759), "Nebraska Center for Cellular Signaling." September 2003 - June 2008, $11,564/year (Mentor), Principal Investigator: M.J. Wheelock.
- National Multiple Sclerosis Society, "Role of IL-12 gene expression in virus-induced encephalomyelitis." PrincipalInvestigator, Co-investigator: E. Fung. $209,708. 10/1/02 - 9/1/05
- PP1423 National Multiple Sclerosis Society, "Effect of resveratrol on development of EAE". Principal Investigatory, Funded $44, 000. 7/1/07 - 6/30/08
- P20 RR18759 National Institutes of Health (10% effort) Nebraska Center for Cellular Signaling (M.J. Wheelock, PI) 9/19/03 -6/30/08
Recent Publications:
- Petro, T.M. ERK-MAP-kinases differentially regulate expression of IL-23 p19 compared with p40 and IFN-beta in Theiler's virus-infected RAW264.7 cells. Immunol Lett. 15;97(1):47-53, Feb 2005.
- Petro, T.M. Disparate expression of IL-12 by SJL/J and B10.S macrophages during Theiler's virus infection is associated with activity of TLR7 and Mitogen-activated Protein Kinases. Microbes and Infection. 7: 224-232, 2005.
- Petro, T.M. Modulation of IL-12 p35 and p40 promoter activity by smokeless Tobacco extract is associated with an effect upon activation of NF-kB but not IRF Transcription factors. International Immunopharmacology 3: 735-745, 2003.
- Vaidyanathan, H, Zhou Y, Petro, T.M., and Schwartzbach, SD. Intracellular localization of the p35 subunit of murine IL-12. Cytokine 21: 120-128, 2003.
- Petro T.M., Anderson LL, Gowler JS, Liu X, and Schwartzbach SD. Smokeless tobacco extract decreases IL-12 production from LPS-stimulated but decreases IL-12 from IFN-gamma-stimulated macrophages. International Immunopharmacology 2:345-355, 2002.
- Vaidyanathan, H., Gentry, J.D., Weatherman, A., Schwartzbach, S.D. and Petro, T.M. Differential response of the murine IL-12 p35 gene to lipopolysaccharide compared with interferon-gamma and CD40 ligation. Cytokine 16:1-9, 2001.
- Kollet J, Kollet, C, Liu, X, Schwartzbach, SD, and Petro, T.M. Deletional analysis of the murine IL-12 p35 promoter comparing interferon-γ and LPS stimulation. J. Immunol.167:5653-5663, 2001.
- Jana M, Liu X, Koka S, Ghosh S, Petro T.M., and Pahan K. Ligation of CD40 stimulates the induction of nitric oxide synthase in microglial cells. J. Biol. Chem. 276:44527-44533, 2001.
- Pahan, K, Sheikh, FG, Liu, X, Hilger, S, McKinney, M, and Petro, T.M. Induction of nitric oxide synthase and activation of NF-kB by interleukin-12 p40 in microglial cells. J.Biol. Chem. 276:7899-7905, 2001.
- Al-Salleeh FM and Petro TM. TLR3 and TLR7 are involved in expression of IL-23 subunits while TLR3 but not TLR7 is involved in expression of IFN- by Theiler’s virus-infected RAW264.7 cells. Microbes and Infection. 2007 ( in press)
- Hause L, Al-Salleeh FM and Petro TM. Expression of IL-27 p28 by Theiler’s virus-Infected Macrophages Depends on TLR3 and TLR7 Activation of JNK-MAP-Kinases. Antiviral Research. 76(2) 159-167, 2007.
- Navarathna DH, Nickerson KW, Duhamel GE, Jerrels TR, Petro TM. Exogenous farnesol interferes with the normal progression of cytokine expression during candidiasis in a mouse model. Infect Immun. 75(8):4006-11, 2007.
- Kollet, JI and Petro TM. IRF-1 and NF-B p50/cRel Bind to Distinct Regions of the Proximal Murine IL-12 p35 Promoter During Costimulation with IFN- and LPS. Molecular Immunology 43: 623-633, 2006.
- Dahlberg, A, Auble, MR, and Petro TM. Reduced expression of IL-12 p35 by SJL/J macrophages responding to Theiler’s virus infection is associated with constitutive activation of IRF-3. Virology 353: 422-432, 2006.