Courtney Griffin, Ph.D.

In my lab, we are interested in the development of blood vessels. Certain diseases require blood vessel development for their progression; tumors, for example, thrive on blood flow. In those situations, we want to know how to stop vessel growth in order to stop disease progression. At other times, such as when wounds are healing, vessel growth is necessary and positive. In those cases we want to learn how to build new vessels.

Blood vessel development is similar in mice and humans, so we use mice to study and manipulate vessels. Much of our work is carried out in mouse embryos, since they undergo rapid and easily visible blood vessel development.

Because we want to understand what genes are required for blood vessel development, we study certain enzymes that help turn genes on and off. These enzymes are specifically involved in relaxing DNA that is normally tightly coiled up in our cells. When DNA is relaxed, genes can be regulated. We use genetically engineered mice to shut down these enzymes that relax DNA in order to determine the effect on blood vessel development. We ultimately hope to identify the particular genes that these enzymes regulate during vascular development, since those genes would be important therapeutic targets for controlling the process of vessel growth.

Watch Dr. Griffin’s 2011 TEDxOU Lecture: Epigenetics and the Influence of Our Genes

My lab studies the transcriptional regulation of genes that impact blood and lymphatic vascular development and maintenance. I became interested in vascular biology and development during my graduate training with Shaun Coughlin at UCSF and in epigenetics and transcription during my postdoctoral training with Terry Magnuson at UNC-Chapel Hill. When I launched my independent career in the Cardiovascular Biology Research Program at OMRF in 2008, I combined these interests together and initiated a program studying the impact of ATP-dependent chromatin-remodeling complexes on vascular development. These complexes transiently modulate chromatin to facilitate transcriptional regulation of target genes. By generating mice with vascular-specific mutations in these complexes, my lab assesses how chromatin remodeling influences expression of genes that affect endothelial cell morphology and behavior. Our long-term goal is to generate insights that can be exploited for developing therapeutic approaches to combat vascular pathologies.

For more details about our current research, please see my lab website: https://griffinc.omrf.org/

Education
B.A., Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, 1995
Ph.D., University of California, San Francisco, CA, 2001
Postdoc, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, 2001-2008

Honors and Awards
1995 Magna cum laude with highest honors in Biology, Harvard College
1998-2001 American Heart Association Predoctoral Fellowship
2002-2005 National Research Service Award Postdoctoral Fellowship
2005-2006 American Heart Association Postdoctoral Fellowship
2006-2011 NIH Pathway to Independence Award
2011 TEDxOU: Epigenetics and the Influence of Our Genes
2013 J. Donald and Patricia Capra Award for Scientific Achievement

Professional Activities
2009-present: Ad hoc peer review for AHA (SouthWest Affiliate and National) and for NIH (CDD and VCMB study sections)
2014-present: AHA SouthWest Affiliate Research Committee Member
2015-2018: NAVBO Councilor
2016-present: Editorial Board Member for Angiogenesis

Memberships
North American Vascular Biology Organization
Society for Developmental Biology
American Heart Association

Joined OMRF Scientific Staff in 2008

Recent Publications

Menendez MT, Ong EC, Shepherd BT, Muthukumar V, Silasi-Mansat R, Lupu F, Griffin CT.  BRG1 (Brahma-Related Gene 1) Promotes Endothelial Mrtf Transcription to Establish Embryonic Capillary Integrity. Arterioscler Thromb Vasc Biol. 2017 Jul 20. pii: ATVBAHA.117.309785.  [Epub ahead of print] PMID: 28729363

Crosswhite PL, Podsiadlowska JJ, Curtis CD, Gao S, Xia L, Srinivasan RS, Griffin CT. CHD4-regulated plasmin activation impacts lymphovenous hemostasis and hepatic vascular integrity. J Clin Invest. 2016 Jun 1;126(6):2254-66. PMCID:PMC4887170

Wiley MM, Muthukumar V, Griffin TM, Griffin CT. SWI/SNF Chromatin-Remodeling Enzymes Brahma-Related Gene 1 (BRG1) and Brahma (BRM) are dispensable in multiple models of postnatal angiogenesis but are required for vascular integrity in infant mice. J Am Heart Assoc. 2015 Apr 22;4(4). pii: e001972.PMCID:PMC4579958

Selected Publications

Liu X, Pasula S, Song H,... Griffin C, Xia L, Srinivasan RS, Chen H. Temporal and spatial regulation of epsin abundance and VEGFR3 signaling are required for lymphatic valve formation and function. Sci Signal. 2014 Oct 14;7(347):ra97. PMCID:PMC4226761

Chen H, Griffin C, Xia L, Sathish SR. Molecular and cellular mechanisms of lymphatic vascular maturation. Microvasc Res. 2014 Nov;96:16-22.  PMCID:PMC4263685

Ingram KG, Curtis CD, Silasi-Mansat R, Lupu F, Griffin CT. The NuRD Chromatin-Remodeling Enzyme CHD4 Promotes Embryonic Vascular Integrity by Transcriptionally Regulating Extracellular Matrix Proteolysis. PLoS Genet.  2013;9(12):e1004031. PMCID:PMC3861115

Davis RB, Curtis CD, Griffin CT. BRG1 promotes COUP-TFII expression and venous specification during embryonic vascular development. Development. 2013 Mar;140(6):1272-81. PMCID:PMC3585661

Curtis CD, Davis RB, Ingram KG, Griffin CT. Chromatin-remodeling complex specificity and embryonic vascular development. Cell Mol Life Sci. 2012 Dec;69(23):3921-31. PMCID:PMC3661716

Curtis CD, Griffin CT. The chromatin-remodeling enzymes BRG1 and CHD4 antagonistically regulate vascular Wnt signaling. Mol Cell Biol. 32:1312-1320, 2012. [Abstract]

View all publications in PubMed

Cardiovascular Biology Research Program, MS 45
Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation
825 N.E. 13th Street
Oklahoma City, OK 73104

Phone: (405) 271-7073
Fax: (405) 271-7417
E-mail: Courtney-Griffin@omrf.org

Matthew Menendez, Ph.D.
Postdoctoral Fellow

Chris Schafer, Ph.D.
Postdoctoral Fellow

Melinda Wu,Ph.D.
Postdoctoral Fellow

Sarah Colijn
Graduate Student

Siqi Gao
Graduate Student

Vijay Muthukumar
Manager of Research Lab

Anita James
Administrative Assistant III