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Kathy Svoboda

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Kathy Svoboda, Ph.D.

Professor
Vice Chair, Department of Biomedical Sciences
Member of the GSBS Faculty

3302 Gaston Ave.
Dallas, Texas 75246
Phone: 214-828-8487
Fax: 214-874-4538
Email: ksvoboda@bcd.tamhsc.edu

Education and Post-Graduate Training

Postdoctoral Fellowship, Department of Anatomy and Cell Biology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA (1982-1985)

Ph.D., Department of Anatomy, University of Nebraska Medical Center, Omaha, NE (1982)

M.S., Department of Human Genetics, University of Nebraska Medical Center, Omaha, NE (1979)

B.S., University of Nebraska, Omaha, NE (1974)

Career History

Professor, Department of Biomedical Sciences, Texas A&M Health Science Center Baylor College of Dentistry (2001-present)

Vice Chair, Department of Biomedical Sciences, Texas A&M Health Science Center Baylor College of Dentistry (2008-present)

Director for Research Development, Department of Biomedical Sciences, Texas A&M Health Science Center Baylor College of Dentistry (2007-present)

Adjunct Professor, Department of Ophthalmology, UT Southwestern Medical Center (2001-present)

Director of Cell and Molecular Biology Core Facilities, Department of Biomedical Sciences, Texas A&M Health Science Center Baylor College of Dentistry (1999-present)

Associate Professor, Department of Biomedical Sciences, Texas A&M Health Science Center Baylor College of Dentistry (1998-2001)

Associate Professor, Department of Ophthalmology, Boston University School of Medicine (1996-1998)

Associate Professor of Anatomy and Neurobiology, Boston University School of Medicine (1994-1998)

Co-director of the Confocal Facility, Boston University School of Medicine (1992-1998)

Assistant Professor of Anatomy and Neurobiology, Boston University School of Medicine (1987-1994)

Instructor in Anatomy and Cellular Biology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA (1985-1986)

Teaching Interests

Teaching responsibilities include: 

Craniofacial Growth Track including Prenatal Craniofacial Development, Advanced Human Craniofacial Development and Craniofacial Anomalies (course director), Cell and Molecular Biology of Oral and Craniofacial Tissues, Biochemistry, Cell and Molecular Biology and General Histology, Microscopic Techniques, Techniques in Cell and Molecular Biology (course director).

Research Interests

Dr. Kathy Svoboda has been interested in the role of the cytoskeleton in cell shape changes throughout her career.  She studied neuroepithelial cell shape changes during optic vesicle formation for her Ph.D. thesis topic, and then started studying the corneal epithelial response to extracellular matrix as a postdoctoral project.

She is presently working on several projects that have the long-term objective of understanding cell-matrix communication in whole tissue development models.  Her group has established that just as cultured cells form focal adhesions in response to extracellular matrix proteins, whole tissues also have similar structures termed "cell-matrix attachment complexes" (CMAX).  Both the focal adhesion and CMAX contain cell adhesion molecules, actin-associated proteins and signaling molecules.  This group has shown that these proteins and activated signaling pathways are necessary for reorganizing actin in the embryonic corneal epithelial model.  They have also shown that cell-matrix interactions in whole cartilage are necessary for survival and differentiation.

Understanding these relationships will help elucidate the events and interactions that are involved in tissue-specific differentiation and matrix synthesis.  Her group has developed experimental approaches to examine the spatial relationships between specific cellular components in whole tissues.  These cellular models have been used to determine the three-dimensional relationships between organelles, cytoskeletal proteins and specific mRNA.

In 1998, Dr. Svoboda joined the faculty at Baylor College of Dentistry. Although she is still pursuing the long-term goals of her research, she has become involved in many other projects in the last 10 years.  The new projects (signal transduction pathways controlling palate development, condylar cartilage differentiation and gingival tissue response to nicotine) are related to craniofacial development or cell-matrix interactions in oral tissues.

Dr. Svoboda has served on the executive board and been the program secretary for the American Association of Anatomists and served as the AAA president from 2005-2007 (www.anatomy.org).  She also serves on the editorial board of Developmental Dynamics, Anatomical Record and the Europeakkhs figuren Journal of Dentistry.

The image to the right was the cover for a special issue of CTO on Epithelial-Mesenchymal Transitions.  Dr. Svoboda's student, Julia Chang, demonstrated that E-cadherin had an altered distribution in oral cancer cells.

 [Chang, J.Y.F., Wright, J.M., Svoboda, K.K.H. (2007). Role of epithelial-mesenchymal transition in oral cancer progression.  Cells Tissues Organs 185 (1-3): 40-47].

      Recent Grants

  • Biology of the Embryonic Corneal Epithelium. NIH R01, 1991-2003
  • The Effects of Nicotine on Palate Development. Texas A&M Tobacco Endowment Award, 2000-2002.
  • Individual Predoctoral Dental Scientist Award. For David Erik Kern Harrington, 2000-2006 (mentor)
  • Acquisition of Laser Capture Microdissection and Quantitative PCR Systems. NSF Award, 2003-2007.
  • Plasmid Delivery and Expression in Embryonic Eye Tissues. NIH R03 Award, 2003-2007.
  • Research Infrastructure Improvement Planning Award. NIH R24, Co-PI, 2003-2004.
  • BCD Research Infrastructure Enhancement Program Award. NIH U24, Co-PI, 2004-2006.
  • ICP-MS instrument for Baylor College of Dentistry, NIH DRG shared instrument grant; 2006-2007.
  • Regulation of EMT During Palate Development, March of Dimes Research Grant, 2006-2010.
  • Nicotine Effects on Gingival Fibroblast Wound Healing. Texas A&M Health Science Center Vice President for Research pilot grant, 2006-2008.
  • Testing antioxidant compounds on gingival fibroblast cells, PerioSciences, 2008-2010.

Selected Publications

Cornea Epithelia Project:
  1. Chu, C.L., Reenstra, W.R., and Svoboda, K.K.H. (2000). Extracellular signal-regulated kinase and PI3 kinase are necessary for collagen binding and actin reorganization in avian corneal epithelia. Invest. Ophthal. and Vis. Sci., 41:3374-3382.
  2. Svoboda, K.K.H. and Reenstra, W.R. (2002).  Approaches to studying cellular signaling: A primer for morphologists.  Anatomical Record, The New Anatomist, 269:123-139.
  3. Watanabe, M., Hitomi, M., van der Wee, K., Rothenberg, F., Fisher, S.A., Zucker, P., Svoboda, K.K.H., Goldsmith, E.C. and Nieman, A-L.  (2002)  The pros and cons of apoptosis assays for use in the study of tissues and organs.  Microscopy and Microanalysis 8:5, 375-391. (cover)
  4. Reenstra, W.R., D.L. Orlow, and K.K.H. Svoboda (2002).  ECM-stimulated signaling and actin reorganization in embryonic corneal epithelia are Rho-dependent.  Invest. Ophthal. and Vis. Sci., 43:3181-3189. (cover)
  5. Svoboda, K.K.H., Moessner, P., Field, T., Acevedo, J.  (2004). ROCK inhibitor (Y27632) increases apoptosis and disrupts the actin cortical mat in embryonic avian corneal epithelium.  Developmental Dynamics 229:579-590.
  6. Svoboda, K.K.H., Petroll, M.W. and Jester, J.V.  (2007).  Second harmonic signal analysis of whole embryonic avian corneas.  Microscopy and Microanalysis 12 (Supp 2): 1550-1551.  DOI 10.1017/S1431927607076714.
  7. Svoboda, K.K.H. and Gordon, M.A. (2008).  A tribute to Elizabeth D. Hay 1927-2007.  Developmental Dynamics 237 (10): 2605-06.
  8. Svoboda, K.K.H., Fishman, D.A. and Gordon, M.A. (2008).  The embryonic chick corneal epithelium: A model system for exploring cell-matrix interactions.  Developmental Dynamics 237 (10): 2667-75.
  9. Cowan, C., Senkayi, C., and Svoboda, K.K.H.  Intracellular localization and function of YFP-RhoA in embryonic corneal epithelial sheets.  Developmental Dynamics (submitted).
Palate Project:
  1. Kang, P. and Svoboda, K.K.H. (2002).  PI3 kinase activity is required for epithelial-mesenchymal transformation during palate fusion. Developmental Dynamics 225:316-321.
  2. Kang, P. and Svoboda, K.K.H. (2002).  Nicotine inhibits palatal fusion and modulates nicotonic receptors and the PI3 kinase pathway in medial edge epithelia.  Orthodontics and Craniofacial Research 6:129-142.
  3. Kang, P. and Svoboda, K.K.H. (2005).  Epithelial-mesenchymal transformation during craniofacial development.  Journal of Dental Research 84 (8):678-690.
  4. Spears, R. and Svoboda, K.K.H. (2005).  Growth factors and signaling proteins in craniofacial development.  Seminars in Orthondontics 11:184-198.
  5. Chang, J.Y.F., Wright J.M. and Svoboda, K.K.H. (2007). Signal transduction pathways involved in epithelial-mesenchymal transition in oral concer compared with other cancers. Cells Tissues Organs 195:40-47.
  6. Yu, W., Kamara, H. and Svoboda, K.K.H. (2008). The role of twist during palate development.  Developmental Dynamics 237 (10): 2716-25.
  7. Yu, W., Ruest, L.B., Svoboda, K.K. (2009). Regulation of epithelial-mesenchymal transition in palatal fusion.  Exp Biol Med (Maywood) 234:483-491.
  8. Yu, W., Serrano, M., San Miguel, S., Ruest, L.B., Svoboda K.K. (2009) Cleft lip and palate genetics and application in early embryological development.  Indian J Plast Surg 42 Suppl S35-50.
Cartilage Development Project:
  1. Hirsch, M.S., Lunsford, L.E., Trinkaus-Randall, V. and Svoboda, K.K.H. (1997).  Chondrocyte survival and differentiation in situ are integrin mediated.  Developmental Dynamics 210:249-263.
  2. Hirsch, M.S. and Svoboda, K.K.H. (1998).  Establishment of a whole organ culture model that recapitulates normal cartilage development.  BioTechniques 24(4):632-636.
  3. Svoboda, K.K.H. (1998).  Chondrocyte-matrix attachment complexes mediate survival differentiation.  Microsc. Res. Tech. 43:112-122.
  4. Harrington, E.K., Lunsford, L.E. and Svoboda, K.K.H. (2004).  Chondrocyte terminal differentiation, apoptosis, and type X collagen expression are downregulated by parathyroid hormone.  Anatomical Record 281A:1286-1295.
  5. Talwar, R.M., Wong, B.S., Svoboda, K. and Harper, R.P. (2006).  Effects of estrogen on chondrocyte proliferation and collagen synthesis in skeletally mature articular cartilage. Journal of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery 64(4):600-609.
  6. Harrington, E.K., Roddy, G., West, R., and Svoboda, K.K.H. (2007). Parathyroid hormone/parathyroid hormone-related peptide modulates growth of avian sternal cartilage via chondrocytic proliferation.  The Anatomical Record: Advances in Integrative Anatomy and Evolutionary Biology (290 (2):155-167.
  7. Harrington, E.K., Coon, D.J., Kern, M.F., Svoboda, K.K. (2010).  PTH stimulated growth and decreased Col-X deposition are phosphotidylinositol-3,4,5 triphosphate kinase and mitogen activating protein kinase dependent in avian sterna.  Anat Rec 293:225-234.
Gingival Fibroblast Project:

  1. Fang, Y. and Svoboda, K.K.H. (2005).  Nicotine inhibits myofibroblast differentiation in human gingival fibroblasts.  Journal of Cellular Biochemistry 95:1108-1119.

  2. Fang, Y. and Svoboda, K.K.H. (2005).  Nicotine inhibits human gingival fibroblast migration via modulation of Rac signaling pathways.  Journal of Clinical Periodontology, Dec., 32 (12): 1200-1207.

Collaborative Studies:
  1. Maciejewska, I., Cowan, C., Svoboda, K., D'Souza R., Butler, W.T., and Qin, C. (2008).  The NH2-terminal and COOH-terminal fragments of dentin matrix protein 1 (DMP1) localize differently in the compartments of dentin and growth plate of bone.  Journal of Histochemistry & Cytochemistry 57:155-166.
  2. Maciejewska, I., Qin, D., Huang, B., Sun, Y., Svoboda, K., Bonewald L., Butler, W.T., Feng, J.Q., and Qin, C. (2009).  Distinct compartmentalization of dentin matrix protein 1 fragments in mineralized tissues and cells.  Cells Tissues Organs 189:186-191.
  3. Chang, Y.C., Sabourin, C.L., Lu, S.E. Sasaki, T., Svoboda, K.K., Gordon, M.K., Riley, D.J., Casillas, R.P., Gerecke, D.R. (2009). Upregulation of gamma-2 laminin-332 in the mouse ear vesicent wound model.  J Biochem Mol Toxicol 23:172-184.