John Castorino
Visiting Assistant Professor of Biological Sciences
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Biography
John Castorino uses molecular biology as a way for students to explore various areas of biology including biomedical and ecological topics. His personal research examines the intracellular trafficking of the cancer-related protein CD147 and a family of monocarboxylate transporters while also identifying novel trafficking partners of CD147. His other research interests include messenger RNA stability, microRNAs, and other gene expression regulation mechanisms.
Prior to joining Smith College, he was associate professor of molecular biology at Hampshire College where he advised students on a wide array of projects such as generating neurons in tissue culture from stem cells, making stem cells from somatic cells, cricket epigenetics, and biological animation. Outside of the laboratory, his interests lie in electronics, art, and zymurgy.
Publications
Charney ND, Kubel JE, Woodard CT, Carbajal-González BI, Avis S, Blyth JA, Eiseman CS, Castorino J, and Malone JH. 2019. Survival of Polyploid Hybrid Salamander Embryos. BMC Developmental Biology, 19(1): 21.
Charney ND, Kubel JE, Eiseman CS, Blyth JA, Castorino J, and Malone JH. 2019. Distinguishing Egg Masses of Unisexual and Jefferson Salamanders. Herpetological Conservation and Biology, 14(1): 250-260.
Fakhraldeen SA, Clark RJ, Roopra A, Chin EN, Huang W, Castorino J, Wisinski KB, Kim T, Spiegelman VS, and Alexander CM. 2015. Two Isoforms of the RNA Binding Protein, Coding Region Determinant-binding Protein (CRD-BP/IGF2BP1), Are Expressed in Breast Epithelium and Support Clonogenic Growth of Breast Tumor Cells. Journal of Biological Chemistry, 290(21): 13386-400.
Charney ND, Castorino JJ, Dobro MJ, and Steely SL. 2014. Embryo development inside female salamander (Ambystoma jeffersonianum-laterale) prior to egg laying. PLOS ONE, 9(3):e91919.
Adijanto J, Castorino JJ, Wang ZX, Maminishkis A, Grunwald GB, and Philp NJ. 2012. Microphthalmia-associated transcription factor (MITF) promotes differentiation of human retinal pigment epithelium (RPE) by regulating microRNAs-204/211 expression. Journal of Biological Chemistry, 287(24): 20491-503.
Castorino JJ, Gallagher-Colombo SM, Levin AV, FitzGerald PG, Polishook J, Kloeckener-Gruissem B, Ostertag E, and Philp NJ, 2011. Juvenile cataract-associated mutation of solute carrier SLC16A12 impairs trafficking of the protein to the plasma membrane. Investigative Ophthalmology & Visual Science, 52(9): 6774-84.
Castorino JJ, Deborde S, Deora A, Schreiner R, Gallagher-Colombo SM, Rodriguez-Boulan E, Philp NJ, 2011. Basolateral sorting signals regulating tissue-specific polarity of heteromeric monocarboxylate transporters in epithelia. Traffic, 12(4): 483-98.
Gallagher SM, Castorino JJ, and Philp NJ, 2009. Interaction of monocarboxylate transporter 4 with beta1-integrin and its role in cell migration. American Journal of Physiology- Cell Physiology, 296(3): 414-21.