Prof. Wakam CHANG

Education
PhD	Department of Cell Biology, Yale University, USA (2008)
MPhil	Department of Cell Biology, Yale University, USA (2005)
BSc	Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Peking University, China (2001)

Positions
2020 – Present	Assistant Professor, Faculty of Health Sciences,
2014 – 2019	Associate Research Scientist, Department of Pathology and Cell Biology, Columbia University, USA
2010 – 2014	Postdoctoral Scientist, Department of Pathology and Cell Biology, Columbia University, USA
2008 – 2010	Postdoctoral Scientist, Department of Molecular, Cellular and Developmental Biology, Yale University, USA

Research Interests

Cell polarity is a fundamental feature of living cells and is essential for many cellular and developmental processes. My laboratory is interested in how cells establish their polarity and how this process is affected by aging. We focus on: 1) how cell polarization is driven by the cytoskeleton; 2) elucidating the roles of nuclear envelope proteins in regulating cell polarization; 3) identifying aging-associated secretory factors that affect cell polarity; 4) deciphering the molecular mechanism of polarity-related aging factors. Our goal is to provide better understanding of aging mechanisms and identify aging markers and targets for aging treatments.

Representative Publications

Chang W., Wang Y., Luxton G.W.G., Östlund C., Worman H.J., Gundersen G.G. Imbalanced nucleocytoskeletal connections create common polarity defects in progeria and physiologically aged cells. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A (in press). Schrank B.R., Aparicio T., Li Y., Chang W., Chait B.T., Gundersen G.G., Gottesman M.E., Gautier J. (2018) Nuclear ARP2/3 drives DNA break clustering for homology-directed repair. Nature 559(7712):61-66. Jayo A., Malboubi M., Antoku S., Chang W., Ortiz-Zapater E., Groen C., Pfisterer K., Tootle T., Charras G., Gundersen G.G., Parsons M. (2016) fascin regulates nuclear movement and deformation in migrating cells. Dev Cell 38(4):371-83. Chang W., Gundersen G.G. (2016) Swollen Nuclei Signal from the Grave. Cell 165(5):1051-2. Chang W., Antoku S., Gundersen G.G. (2016). Wound-healing assays to study mechanisms of nuclear movement in fibroblasts and myoblasts. Methods Mol Biol 1411:255-67. Chang W., Antoku S., Östlund C., Worman H.J., Gundersen G.G. (2015) Linker of nucleoskeleton and cytoskeleton (LINC) complex-mediated actin-dependent nuclear positioning orients centrosomes in migrating myoblasts. Nucleus 6(1):77-88. Chang W., Worman H.J., Gundersen G.G. (2015) Accessorizing and anchoring the LINC complex for multifunctionality. J Cell Biol 208(1):11-22. Chang W., Folker E.S., Worman H.J., Gundersen G.G. (2013) Emerin organizes actin flow for nuclear movement and centrosome orientation in migrating fibroblasts. Mol Biol Cell 24(24):3869-80. Mazzolini R., Dopeso H., Mateo-Lozano S., Chang W., Rodrigues P., Bazzocco S., Alazzouzi H., Landolfi S., Hernández-Losa J., Andretta E., Alhopuro P., Espín E., Armengol M., Tabernero J., Ramón y Cajal S., Kloor M., Gebert J., Mariadason JM., Schwartz S Jr., Aaltonen LA., Mooseker MS., Arango D. (2012) Brush border myosin Ia has tumor suppressor activity in the intestine. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 109(5):1530-5. Chang W., Zaarour R.F., Reck-Peterson S., Rinn J., Singer R.H., Snyder M., Novick P. and Mooseker M.S. (2008) Myo2p, a class V myosin in budding yeast, associates with a large ribonucleic acid-protein complex that contains mRNAs and subunits of the RNA-processing body. RNA 14:491-502. Olivares A.O., Chang W., Mooseker M.S., Hackney D.D. and De La Cruz E.M. (2006) The tail domain of myosin Va modulates actin binding to one head. J Biol Chem 281:31326-31336. Cao T.T., Chang W., Masters S.E. and Mooseker M.S. (2004) Myosin-Va binds to and mechanochemically couples microtubules to actin filaments. Mol Biol Cell 15:151-161.

Professional Activities
Journal Reviewer: Communication Biology.