Calvin Vary, Ph.D.

Center for Molecular Medicine
Maine Medical Center Research Institute
81 Research Drive
Scarborough, ME 04704
(207) 885-8148 Office
(207) 885-8175 Lab
(207) 885-8179 Fax
varyc@mmc.org

Biosketch

Calvin Vary, Ph.D., is a Senior Scientist and principle investigator in the Center for Molecular Medicine at MMCRI. Dr. Vary received his PhD in Biological Chemistry from Michigan State University. Following work in the area of RNA secondary structure and its relationship to function, he spent several years conducting research and development in the biotechnology sector at Allied Signal Corp. and moved to Maine to join AgriTech, now IDEXX Corp. He joined the Maine Cytometry Research Institute in 1991 prior to this Institution's incorporation into the Maine Medical Center as the MMC Research Institute. Currently in MMCRI's Center for Molecular Medicine, Dr. Vary studies the regulation of TGFb receptor signaling in vascular development and disease. He also directs the Protein, Nucleic Acid Analysis and Cell Imaging Core facility within the Center of Biological Research Excellence in Vascular Biology.

Research Interests

Our laboratory works to understand how endoglin, a TGFb receptor-associated transmembrane protein, and the TGFb receptors, regulate the process of angiogenesis and the occurrance of vascular pathology. In humans, mutations in the genes encoding either endoglin, or the TGFb receptor ALK1, cause the vascular disease hereditary hemorrhagic telangiectasia (HHT). Currently, we are interested in those aspects of endoglin's structure that regulate its phosphorylation by the TGFb receptors, and how endoglin phosphorylation effects cell physiology within a variety of tissue contexts. Understanding the details of endoglin's function will lead to mechanistic insights into the processes of cell adhesion, migration, and invasion, and will advance our understanding of a variety of complex biological processes, including vascular development, vascular disease, and cancer progression.

Educational, Community, State, and International Affiliations

Dr. Vary is a long-standing member of the MMC Mentored Research Committee and has hosted several MMC residents and fellows in his laboratory. He currently holds the position of adjunct associate professor at the University of Southern Maine and in the University of Vermont College of Medicine. He is an associate of the Graduate Faculty in the University of Maine Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences in and the Functional Genomics Program. In addition, Dr. Vary serves as chair of the Maine Technology Institute Biotechnology Sector Board, and is a member of the HHT Foundation International, Global Research and Medical Advisory Board.

Current Staff

Diana Romero, PhD, Postdoctoral Fellow

Aleksandra Terzic, DVM, PhD, Postdoctoral Fellow

Kira Young, BS, Doctoral Candidate

and Barbara Conley, MS, Research Associate.

Recent Placements and Graduates

Rosi Koleva, PhD, Department of Cancer Biology, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Harvard Medical School

Thea Nicola, MD, PhD, Department of Cell Biology, University of Alabama.

Maria Mancini, PhD, Department of Pathology, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center

Selected Recent Publications

Nikopoulos GN, Martins JF, Adams TL, Karaczyn A, Adams D, Vary C, Verdi JM. NRAGE: A Potential Rheostat During Branching Morphogenesis. Mech Dev 2009; 126:337-349.

Romero, D, Iglesias, M, Vary, CPH, and Quintanilla, M. Functional blockade of Smad4 leads to a decrease in b-catenin levels and signaling activity in human pancreatic carcinoma cells. Carcinogenesis, 2008; 5:1070-1076.

Craft, CS, Li, Xu, Romero, D, Vary, CPH, and Bergan, RC. Genistein induces phenotypic reversion of endoglin deficiency in human prostate cancer cells. Mol Pharmacol. 2008;73(1):235-42.

Bernabeu C, Conley BA, and Vary CPH. Novel Biochemical Pathways of Endoglin in Vascular Cell Physiology. J. Cell. Biochem., 2007; 102:1375-1388.

Mancini ML, Verdi JM, Conley BA, Nicola T, Spicer DB, Oxburgh L, and Vary, CPH. Endoglin is required for myogenic differentiation potential of neural crest stem cells. Dev. Biol. 2007; 308: 520-533.

Craft CS, Romero D, Vary CPH, and Bergan, RC. Endoglin inhibits prostate cancer motility via activation of the ALK2-Smad1 pathway. Oncogene, 2007; 26:7240-50.

Santibanez JF, Letamendia A, Perez-Barriocanal F, Silvestri C, Saura M, Vary CPH, Lopez-Novoa JM, Attisano L, Bernabeu C. Endoglin increases eNOS expression by modulating Smad2 protein levels and Smad2-dependent TGF- signaling. J. Cell Physiol. 2007; 210:456-468.

Jerkic M, Rivas-Elena JV, Santibanez JF, Prieto M, Rodríguez-Barbero A, Pericacho M, Arévalo M, Vary CPH, Letarte M, Bernabeu C, and López-Novoa JM. Endoglin regulates COX-2 expression and activity. Circ. Res. 2006; 99:248-56.

Koleva RI, Conley BA, Romero D, Riley KS, Marto JA, Lux A, and Vary CPH. Endoglin Structure and Function: Determinants of Endoglin Phosphorylation by TGFb Receptors. J. Biol. Chem. 2006; 281:25110-25123.

Lindner V, Conley BA, Friesel R, Vary CPH. The role of periostin in the vascular response to Injury. Arter. Throm. and Vas. Bio. 2005; 25:77-83.

Conley BA, Koleva R, Smith JD, Kacer D, Zhang D, Bernabeu C, and Vary CPH. Endoglin Controls Cell Migration and Composition of Focal Adhesions. J. Biol. Chem. 2004; 279:27440-27449.

Full Publication List

Lab Photo

Left to Right: Cal Vary, Maria Mancini, Diana Romero, Barbara Conley, and Scott Morin