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Visiting Faculty, Entertainment Technology Center, College of Fine Arts & School of Computer Science, Carnegie Mellon University, 2006 - present
Research Fellow Specialty
Faculty of the STUDIO for Creative Inquiry, College
of Fine Arts, Carnegie Mellon University, 1995-present
Assisant, Associate Professor
of Biological Sciences, Carnegie Mellon University,
1989-2001
Senior Research Fellow,
Research Faculty, California Institute of Technology,
1987-1989
NIH Postdoctoral Research
Fellow, California Institute of Technology, 1984-1987
Proctor and Gamble Postdoctoral
Research Fellow, California Institute of Technology,
1984
Ph.D. Biophysics, Syracuse
University, 1984
M.S. Physics, Syracuse
University, 1983
B.S.
Physics, Syracuse University, 1978
Research
Description
For the past decade, my principal research interest has been focused on the development of nerve cells in the eye. One project involves the analysis of the transcription factor called lozenge, a homologue of the human gene AML1 (acute myeloid leukemia 1). Transcription factors are proteins that control when other genes are turned on or off. We have found that the LOZENGE proteins initially influence cells with undetermined fates to choose survival over death. We have also found that LOZENGE proteins contribute to how a cell chooses a specific fate. We are investigating what genes regulate lozenge and in turn, what it specifically regulates. Our research uses a combination of confocal microscopy techniques as well as quantitative reverse transcription PCR analysis of mRNA expression to explore the genes that lozenge regulates.
New directions include the analysis of TRP (calcium channel) in the context of a rat chronic pain model.
“Tissue Engineering for Life” – the movie.
Dr. Pollock also serves as Principal Investigator on a five year NIH project, Tissue Engineering for Life. Dr. Pollock's role on this project is to serve as Producer/Director for a series of movie on tissue engineering. Pollock is also producing an educational world-wide-web base resource on tissue engineering. With grant management by the Pittsburgh Tissue Engineering Initiative (www.ptei.org), the project engages several organizations throughout Pittsburgh including; STUDIO for Creative Inquiry, College of Fine Arts, Carnegie Mellon University, and The Carnegie Science Center - Buhl Planetarium. The first edition of the Planetarium show opened to the public in January 2003, the second edition in 2004 and the third edition is planned for 2005. Information on the show is available at http://www.ptei.org/teshow/.
"In this animation, the tip of a syringe appears in the bone marrow to withdraw stem cells for medical research. Direction John Pollock/Created byLaura Gonzalez."
Dr. Pollock also serves as Principal Investigator and Director for a SCIENCE EDUCATION PARTNERSHIP AWARD from the National Center for Research Resources (NIH) to produce science education films for the public. The most recent production is an alldome High Definition video planetarium show called "OUR CELLS, OURSELVES," which is on the immune system and juvenile diabetes (www.sepa.duq.edu). Concurrent with this film, I am directing a production team at the Carnegie Mellon University Entertainment Technology Center who are working with me to produce educational videogames on the immune system. I am also co-directing a project with Dr. Dave Lampe that celebrates Charles Darwin’s 200th birthday with a year-long and city-wide partnership including Duquesne University, Carnegie Science Center, Carnegie Museum of Natural History, Pittsburgh Zoo & PPG Aquarium, Phipps Conservatory & Botanical Garden, The National Aviary, The Children’s Museum of Pittsburgh, and the Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh (www.sepa.duq.edu/darwin). Other current projects are producing health literacy films for patients.
Representative Publications:
1. J. A. Pollock and Seymour Benzer. 1988. Transcript Localization of Four Opsin Genes In the Three Visual Organs in Drosophila; RH2 is Ocellus Specific. Nature 333, 779-782.
2. J. A. Pollock, A. Asaf, A. Peretz, C. Nichols, M. H. Mojet, R. C. Hardie and B. Minke. 1995. TRP, a protein essential for inositide-mediated Ca2+ influx is localized adjacent to the calcium stores in Drosophila photoreceptors. J. Neurosci. 15, 3747 3760.(PDF 7.7 MB)
3. P. Batterham, J. R. Crew, A. M. Sokac, J. R. Andrews, G. M. F. Pasquini, A. G. Davies, R. F. Stocker, and J. A. Pollock. 1996. Genetic analysis of the lozenge gene complex in Drosophila melanogaster: adult visual system phenotypes. Journal of Neurogenetics 10(4) 193-220.
4. M. E. Martone, J. A. Pollock, Y. Yhang, Y. and M. H. Ellisman. (1996). Ultrastructural localization of dendritic messenger RNA in adult rat hippocampus. J. Neuroscience 16: 7437-7446.(PDF 1.7 MB)
5. B. Gillo, I. Chorna, H. Cohen, B. Cook, I. Manistersky, O. Devary, A. Arnon, A. Baumann, U. B. Kaupp, J. A. Pollock, Z. Selinger and B. Minke. (1996). Co-expression of Drosophila TRP and TRPL in Xenopus oocytes reconstitutes a capacitative Ca 2+ entry similar to the light-activated conductance. PNAS USA 93 , 14146-14151. (PDF 344)
6. J. R. Crew, P. Batterham, and J. A. Pollock. 1997. Developing compound eye in lozenge mutants of Drosophila: lozenge expression in the R7 equivalence group. Development Genes and Evolution 206, 481-493. (PDF 6.6 MB)
7. D. L. Taylor, K. Burton, R. DeBiasio, K. Giuliano, A. Gough, T. Leonardo, J. A. Pollock, D. Farkas. 1997. Automated light microscopy for the study of the brain: Cellular and molecular dynamics, development and tumorigenesis . In "Imaging Brain Structure and Function." Volume 820 of the Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences, 208-228. (PDF 2.1 MB)
8. J. A. Pollock, B. Maneckshana, T. E. Leonardo. 1997. Three-Dimensional Time-Lapse Digital Movie Analysis Of The Developing Fruit Fly Eye In Organ Culture. Microscopy and Microanalysis 3 (2): 1129-1130. (PDF 2.4 MB)
9. M. E. Martone, J. A. Pollock, and M. H. Ellisman. 1998. Subcellular localization of mRNA in neuronal cells: contributions of high resolution in situ hybridization techniques. A review Molecular Neurobiology 18:3, 227-246.
10. K.J. Behan, C.D. Nichols, T. L. Cheung, A. Farlow, B. M. Hogan P. Batterham and JA Pollock (2002) Yan regulates Lozenge during Drosophila eye development. Dev Genes Evol, 212:267-276. (PDF 656KB).
11. N. Siddall, K. J. Behan, N., J. R. Crew, T. L. Cheung, J. A. Fair, P. Batterham, and J.A. Pollock (2003) Mutations in lozenge and D-Pax2 invoke
ectopic patterned cell death in the developing Drosophila eye using distinct mechanisms. Dev Genes Evol 213:107-119 (PDF 1.6 MB)
12. K. Behan, J. Fair, S. Singh, M. Bogwitz, T. Perry, V. Grubor, F. Cunningham, C. Nichols, T. Cheung, P. Batterham and J. A. Pollock (2005) Alternative splicing removes an Ets interaction domain from Lozenge during Drosophila eye development. Dev Genes Evol. 215:423-435 (PDF 466)
13. S. Sethi, W. Adams, J. A. Pollock and P.A. Witt-Enderby (2008) C-terminal domains within human MT(1) and MT(2) melatonin receptors are involved in internalization processes. J Pineal Res. 2008 Mar 13. (PDF 248)
14. J. P. McKay, B. Nightingale and J. A. Pollock (2008) Helmsman is expressed in both trachea and Photoreceptor development; partial inactivation alters trachea morphology and visually guided behavior. Journal of Neurogenetics, Apr-Jun;22(2):1. (PDF 588)
Office Phone: (412) 396-5565
Cell Phone: (412) 855-4043
Email: pollock@duq.edu
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