Research in our lab is focused on the molecular basis of prostate and urinary tract development, physiology, and toxicology.  Read more at the Vezina Lab website.

BA 1998 - Chemistry / Biology - St. Olaf College

PhD 2003 - Pharmacology & Toxicology - University at Buffalo

Post-Doc Fellowship 2003-09 - UW-Madison

1. Buresh-Stiemke RA, Malinowski RL, Keil KP, Vezina CM, Oosterhof A, van Kuppeveltc TH, and Marker PC. (2012). Distinct expression patterns of Sulf1 and Hs6st1 spatially regulate heparan sulfate sulfation and growth factor signaling during prostate development and are regulated by BMP4 and BMP7. Dev Dyn 241:2005-2013. PMC3677568.
2. Keil KP, Mehta V, Branam AM, Abler LL, Buresh-Stiemke RA, Joshi PS, Schmitz CT, Marker PC, Vezina CM. (2012). Wnt inhibitory factor 1 (Wif1) is regulated by androgens and enhances androgen-dependent prostate development. Endocrinol 153: 6091-6103. (Cover). PMC3512059.
3. Laporta J, Peters TL, Merriman K, Vezina CM, Hernandez LL. (2013). Serotonin (5-HT) affects expression of liver metabolic enzymes and mammary gland glucose transporters during the transition from pregnancy to lactation. Plos One 8: e57847.PMC3585179.
4. Mehta V, Schmitz CT, Keil KP, Joshi PS, Abler LL, Lin T-M, Taketo MM, Sun X, Vezina CM. (2013). Beta-catenin (CTNNB1) induces Bmp expression in urogenital sinus epithelium and participates in prostatic bud initiation and patterning. Dev Biol 376: 125-135. (Cover). PMC3602957
5. Branam AM, Davis NM, Moore RW, Schneider AJ, Vezina CM, Peterson RE. (2013). TCDD inhibition of canonical wnt signaling disrupts prostatic bud formation in mouse urogenital sinus. Toxicol Sci 133: 42-43. PMC-Journal In Process.
6. Gharaee-Kermani M, Rodriguez-Nieves JA, Mehra R, Vezina CM, Sarma AV, Macoska JA (2013). Obesity-induced diabetes and lower urinary tract fibrosis promote urinary voiding dysfunction in a mouse model. The Prostate 73:1123-1133. PMC-Journal In Process.
7. Keil KP, Altmann H, Mehta V, Abler LL, Joshi PJ, Elton E and Vezina CM. (2013). Expression Catalog of DNA methylatating and demethylating genes in developing mouse lower urinary tract. Gene Expr Patterns 13: 413-424. PMC-Journal In Process.
8. Laporta J, Keil KP, Vezina CM, Hernandez LL. (2014). Peripheral Serotonin is Necessary for the Regulation of Maternal Calcium Levels and Calcium Trafficking and Protein expression in Mammary Epithelial Cells during Lactation in Mice. PLoS One 9:e110190.
9. Bauman TM, Nicholson TM, Abler LL, Eliceiri KW, Huang W, Vezina CM, Ricke WA. (2014). Characterization of fibrillar collagens and extracellular matrix of glandular benign prostatic hyperplasia nodules. PLoS One 9:e109102. PMC-Journal In Process.
10. Keil KP, Abler LL, Mehta V, Altmann HM, Laporta J, Plisch EH, Suresh M, Hernandez LL, Vezina CM. (2014). DNA methylation of E-cadherin is a priming mechanism for prostate development. Dev Biol 387: 142-153 (Cover).
11. Wong L, Gipp J, Carr J, Loftus C, Bench M, Lee S-H, Mehta V, Vezina CM, Bushman W. (2014). Prostate vasculogenesis in development and inflammation. The Prostate 74:346-58. PMC-Journal In Process.
12. Schneider AJ, Moore RW, Branam AM, Abler LL, Keil KP, Mehta V, Vezina CM, Peterson RE. (2014). In Utero exposure to TCDD alters Wnt signaling during mouse prostate development: linking ventral prostate agenesis to downregulated β-catenin signaling. Toxicol Sci 141:176-187. PMC-Journal In Process.
13. Laporta J, Keil KP, Weaver SR, Cronick C, Prichard A, Crenshaw TD, Henye G, Vezina CM, Lipinski RJ, Hernandez LL. (2014). Novel pathways and molecular mechanisms involved in non-neuronal serotonin (5-HT) regulation of calcium metabolism during lactation. Mol Endocrinol 28: 1866-1874. PMC-Journal In Process.
       Commentary in MadPage Today. Boyles S. “Does Breast Feeding Drain Women of Calcium? Published
       November 5, 2014.
14. Keil KP, Abler LL, Laporta J, Altmann HM, Mehta VJ, Hernandez L, Vezina CM. (2014). Androgen receptor DNA methylation regulates the timing and androgen sensitivity of mouse prostate ductal development. Dev Biol 396: 237-245. PMC Journal- In Process.
15. Bauman TM, Huang W, Peterson RE, Marker PC, Vezina CM, Ricke WA. (2014). Beta-catenin is elevated in human benign prostatic hyperplasia specimens compared to histologically normal prostate tissue. Amer J Clin Exp Urol. 2:313-322.
16. Nicholson TM, Moses M, Uchtmann K, Keil KP, Bjorling DE, Vezina CM, Wood RW, Ricke WA. (2015) Estrogen receptor-alpha is a key mediator and therapeutic target for bladder complications of benign prostatic hyperplasia. J Urol 193: 722-729.
17. Keil KP, Peterson RE, Vezina CM. (2014). A maternal methyl donor diet, capable of altering fetal DNA methylation, does not prevent fetal prostate development from inhibition by TCDD. Organohal Comp 76: 592-595.
18. Becker Semanas N, Commers TW, Dennison KL, Kurz SG, Lachel CM, Leland Wavrin K, Eckert QA, Bowler M, Warren CL, Nijman IJ, Guryev V, Cuppen E, Flister MJ, Jacob HJ, Hubner N, Sullivan R, Vezina CM, and Shull JD. (2014). Genetic Etiology of Renal Agenesis: Fine Mapping of Renag1 and Identification of Kit as the Functional Candidate Gene. PLoS One 10: e0118147.
19. Georgas KM, Armstrong J, Keast J, Larkins CE, McHugh KM, Southard-Smith M, Cohn M, Batourina E, Baldock R, Brennan J, Buehler DP, Hanbin D, Davies J, Harding S, Richardson E, Schneider K, Weise CB, Little MH*, Vezina CM*, and Mendelsohn C*. (2015). An illustrated anatomical ontology of the developing mouse lower urogenital tract. Development 142: 1893-1908. (*denotes equal last authors).
20. Keil KP, Abler LL, Altmann HM, Wang Z-Y, Wang P, Ricke WA, Bjorling DE, Vezina CM. 2015. Impact of a folic acid enriched diet on prostate and urinary function in mice susceptible to urinary dysfunction. Amer J Physiol-Renal 308:F1431-1443.
21. Bjorling DE, Wang Z, Vezina CM, Ricke WA, Keil KP, Yu W, Guo L, Zeidel ML, Hill WG. (2014). Evaluation of Voiding Assays in Mice: Impact of Genetic Strains, Gender and Testing Site. Amer J Physiol-Renal 308: F1369-1378.
       Commentary in Amer J Phsiol-Renal, “Continence and Micturition - Physiologic Mechanisms Under
       Behavioral Control” 309: F33–F34, 2015.
22. Keil KP and Vezina CM. 2015. DNA Methylation as a Dynamic Regulator of Development and Disease Processes: Spotlight on the Prostate. Epigenomics 7: 413-425.
23. Bushman W, Bjorling DE, Marker PC, Ricke WA, Vezina CM, Lee S, Nechyporenko A, Hao L, Greer T, Li L. (2015). Custom 4-plex DiLeu Isobaric Labels Enable Relative Quantification of Urinary Proteins in Men with Lower Urinary Tract Symptoms (LUTS). PLoS One 10:e0135415.
24. Keil KP, Altmann, HM, Abler LL, Hernandez LL, Vezina CM. 2015. Histone acetylation regulates prostate ductal morphogenesis through a BMP dependent mechanism. Dev Dyn In Press.
25. Keil KP, Abler LL, Altmann HM, Bushman W, Marker PC, Ricke WA, Bjorling DE, Vezina CM. (2014). Influence of animal husbandry practices on void spot assay outcomes in C57BL/6J male mice. Neurourol Urodyn In Press.
26. Hao L, Greer T, Page D, Shi Y, Bushman W, Vezina CM, Ricke WA, Marker PC, Bjorling DE, Li L. Combining Urine Metabolomics Analysis and Machine Learning Bioinformatics to Discover Novel Biomarkers of Lower Urinary Tract Symptoms. Submitted.
27. Bauman TM, Vezina CM, Huang W, Ricke WA. 2015. Expression and co-localization of beta-catenin and lymphoid enhancing factor-1 in prostate cancer progression. Differentiation Submitted.
28. Ricke WA, Lee C, Clapper T, Schneider AJ, Moore RW, Keil KP, Abler LL, Wynder JL, López Alvarado, A, Beaubrun I, Vo J, Bauman TM, Ricke EA, Peterson RE, Vezina CM. Effects of early life TCDD exposure on urinary function: a two hit model to explain urinary complications of benign prostatic disease. Toxicol Sci Submitted.