Peter Vitiello, PhD

Biography

"As a molecular toxicologist, my research program addresses the molecular interface between environmental toxins and biological systems influencing tissue development and pathogenesis. I have made substantial contributions to redox sensing and signaling in lung epithelial cells during oxidative injury. Most of my current focus is on dedicated redox enzymes, such as those of the thioredoxin and glutathione superfamilies, which control reversible oxidation of cysteine thiols. To test the hypothesis that thioredoxin- and glutathione-dependent enzymes function as molecular sensors of environmental oxidants to initiate redox signaling, my laboratory has developed several novel molecular approaches and transgenic mouse models.

Our work highlights the significance of redox-dependent molecular networks and has broader impact in addressing thiol oxidation during redox perturbations as an adaptive interface between chemistry and biology as it relates to mammalian development, health, and disease. My group researches thioredoxin signaling in bronchopulmonary dysplasia, a chronic oxidative pathology in pre-term infants, using a perinatal hyperoxic exposure model in mice. We also study mitochondrial redox signaling and metabolism in the neuromuscular disease, Friedreich’s Ataxia (FRDA)."

Email

peter-vitiello@ouhsc.edu

Publications

Research Interests:

• Redox Signaling
• Oxidative Stress
• Lung injury & repair
• Antioxidants