Lijun Xia, M.D., Ph.D.
Member and Program Chair
Cardiovascular Biology Research Program
Merrick Foundation Chair in Biomedical Research
Adjunct Professor, Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center
My 101
My research focuses on O-glycans, a sugar that your body makes. In my lab, we’ve found O-glycans are important in the development of the blood and lymphatic vascular system. Without this sugar, the body doesn’t know if it should grow blood vessels or pieces of the lymphatic system, or how to connect them properly. This can lead to many diseases such as cancer metastasis and fatty liver disease. We are working to understand how to prevent these potentially deadly conditions.
My lab also studies the role of glycans on platelets, the smallest blood cell, in the formation of abnormal blood clots, which are the cause of common forms of heart attack and stroke.
In patients with colitis and colorectal tumors, we’ve found that O-glycans are different than in patients with normal intestinal systems. So, we’re also exploring whether abnormalities of this sugar in the intestines might actually cause these diseases—in hopes of using the knowledge we gain to treat these intestinal diseases.
Research
O-glycosylation is a common protein posttranslational modification and is increasingly appreciated as having a wide and yet largely unexplored spectrum of biological functions. My lab studies the biological functions of O-glycans/O-glycoproteins in health and disease using gene-targeted mice as models.
Mucin-type O-glycans (O-glycans) are highly expressed on blood, endothelial, and epithelial cells. Our published studies have identified new roles for O-glycans in blood cell trafficking via O-glycosylation of selectin ligands on leukocytes, vascular integrity via the O-glycoprotein podoplanin, and intestinal inflammation/cancer development via mucins on intestinal epithelial cells. These studies integrate our strengths and background in glycobiology, vascular biology, and hematology with expertise in mouse models. Our main goals are to uncover new in vivo functions of O-glycans/O-glycoproteins in endothelial cells, platelets, and intestinal epithelial cells, and to determine mechanisms by which O-glycoproteins regulate vascular integrity, inflammation, and tumorigenesis.
We are currently focused on the following: 1) Roles of O-glycoprotein ligands and their platelet receptors in vascular integrity and thrombosis; 2) Genetic bleeding disorders with a focus on platelet genetic disorders; and 3) Role of intestinal mucus O-glycans in host and microbiota homeostasis.
Brief CV
Education
M.D., Binzhou Medical College, China, 1982
M.S., Qingdao University Medical College, China, 1990
Ph.D., Soochow University Medical College, China, 1995
Honors and Awards
2003 Scientist Development Award, American Heart Association
2006 Scientific Consultant, American Stem Cell, Inc., CA
2007 Merrick Award for Outstanding Research, Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation
2009 Merrick Foundation Distinguished Scientist, Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation
2012 Edward L. and Thelma Gaylord Prize for Scientific Achievement
Memberships
American Society of Hematology
Member, Society for Glycobiology
Joined OMRF Scientific Staff in 2002.
Publications
View all publications in PubMed
Recent Publications
Kondo Y, Fu J, Wang H, Hoover C, McDaniel JM, Steet R, Patra D, Song J, Pollard L, Cathey S, Yago T, Wiley G, Macwana S, Guthridge J, McGee S, Li S, Griffin C, Furukawa K, James JA, Ruan C, McEver RP, Wierenga KJ, Gaffney PM, Xia L. Site-1 protease deficiency causes human skeletal dysplasia due to defective inter-organelle protein trafficking. JCI Insight. 2018 Jul 26;3(14). pii: 121596. PMCID:PMC6124414
Zhou L, Jiang M, Shen H, You T, Ding Z, Cui Q, Ma Z, Yang F, Xie Z, Shi H, Su J, Cao L, Lin J, Yin J, Dai L, Wang H, Wang Z, Yu Z, Ruan C, Xia L. Clinical and Molecular Insights into Glanzmann's Thrombasthenia in China. Clin Genet. 2018 Aug;94(2):213-20. PMCID: PMC6041146
Ghafoory S, Varshney R, Robison T, Kouzbari K, Woolington S, Murphy B, Xia L, Ahamed J. Platelet TGF-β1 deficiency decreases liver fibrosis in a mouse model of liver injury. Blood Adv. 2018 Mar 13; 2(5):470-80. PMCID: PMC5851416
Selected Publications
Li Y, Fu J, Ling Y, Yago T, McDaniel JM, Song J, Bai X, Kondo Y, Qin Y, Hoover C, McGee S, Shao B, Liu Z, Sonon R, Azadi P, Marth JD, McEver RP, Ruan C, Xia L. Sialylation on O-glycans protects platelets from clearance by liver Kupffer cells. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA. 2017 Aug 1;114(31):8360-5. PMCID:PMC5547648
Bergstrom K, Liu X, Zhao Y, Gao N, Wu Q, Song K, Cui Yi, Li Y, McDaniel JM, McGee S, Chen W, Huycke MM, Houchen CW, Zenewicz LA, West CM, Chen H, Braun J, Fu J, Xia L*. Defective intestinal mucin-type O-glycosylation causes spontaneous colitis-associated cancer in mice. Gastroenterology. 2016 July;15:152-64. PMCID:PMC5068133
Pan Y, Yago T, Fu J. Herzog B, McDaniel JM, Padmaja Mehta-D’souza, Cai X, Ruan C, McEver RP, West C, Dai K, Chen H, Xia L. Podoplanin requires sialylated O-glycans for stable expression on lymphatic endothelial cells and for interaction with platelets. Blood. 2014 Dec 4;124(24):3656-65. PMCID: PMC4256915
Herzog BH, Fu J, Wilson SJ, Hess PR, Sen A, McDaniel JM, Pan Y, Sheng M, Yago T, Silasi-Mansat R, McGee S, May F, Nieswandt B, Morris AJ, Lupu F, Coughlin SR, McEver RP, Chen H, Kahn ML, Xia L. Podoplanin maintains high endothelial venule integrity by interacting with platelet CLEC-2. Nature. 2013 Oct3;502(7469):105-9. PMCID: PMC3791160
Fu J, Wei B, Wen T, Johansson ME, Liu X, Bradford E, Thomsson KA, McGee S, Mansour L, Tong M, McDaniel JM, Sferra TJ, Turner J, Chen H, Hansson GC, Braun J, Xia L. Loss of intestinal core 1-derived O-glycans causes spontaneous colitis in mice. J Clin Invest. 2011 Apr;121(4):1657-66. PMCID: PMC3069788
Yago T, Fu J, McDaniel JM, Miner JJ, McEver RP, Xia L. Core 1-derived O-glycans are essential E-selectin ligands on neutrophils. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA. 2010 May 18;107(20):9204-9. PMCID: PMC2889084
Contact
Cardiovascular Biology Research Program, MS 45
Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation
825 N.E. 13th Street
Oklahoma City, OK 73104
Phone: (405) 271-7892
Lab: (405) 271-3979
Fax: (405) 271-3137
E-mail: Lijun-Xia@omrf.org
Lab Staff
Jianxin Fu, M.D., Ph.D.
Research Assistant Member
Kirk Bergstrom, Ph.D.
Research Assistant Member
Yuji Kondo, Ph.D.
Research Assistant Member
Bojing Shao, Ph.D.
Assistant Staff Scientist
Jane Song, Ph.D.
Assistant Staff Scientist
Dylan Shan, Ph.D.
Postdoctoral Fellow
John Michael McDaniel
Senior Laboratory Manager
Samuel McGee
Senior Research Assistant
Meixiang Zhou
Senior Research Technician
Christopher Hoover
Graduate Student
Huiping Shi
M.D./Ph.D. Student
Yizhi Jiang
Visiting Scholar
Todd Walker
Network Support Specialist
Alisa Wooten
Laboratory Assistant
Mia Pederson-Rambo
Administrative Assistant
News from the Xia lab
OMRF honored three scientists and added a new board member at its annual spring board meeting and honors celebration Tuesday. Researcher John Harley, M.D., Ph.D., was awarded the Edward L. and Thelma Gaylord Prize for Scientific Achievement. OMRF named Rodger McEver, M.D., as the Alvin Chang Chair in Cardiovascular Biology and Lijun Xia, M.D, Ph.D., […]
When an epileptic seizure strikes, it’s almost always frightening: violent, involuntary muscle contractions, often accompanied by a loss of consciousness. Epilepsy affects more than 3 million Americans, including an estimated 100,000 Oklahomans. In most cases, the cause is not known. But a study from the Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation casts new light on how injuries […]
A new study from the Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation has found a potential cause of fatty liver disease, a condition linked to obesity that can lead to cirrhosis of the liver and an increased risk of liver cancer. In a study published in the November issue of the Journal of Clinical Investigation, OMRF scientist Lijun […]
At its semiannual board meeting Wednesday, the Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation honored scientists Patrick Wilson, Ph.D., and Lijun Xia, M.D., Ph.D. The foundation also honored three long-time board members. The board presented the Merrick Award for Outstanding Research to Xia and Wilson. Established in 1981 by Elizabeth Merrick Coe through the Merrick Foundation of Ardmore, […]
The Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation announced today that it has received a $10 million grant from the National Institutes of Health. “This is yet another important step in the emergence of Oklahoma as a center of biomedical excellence,” said OMRF President Dr. J. Donald Capra. “Five years ago, this state had never seen a $10 […]