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Mark T. Bedford, Ph.D.

Present Title & Affiliation

Primary Appointment

Associate Professor, Department of Carcinogenesis, Science Park - Research Division, The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center, Smithville, TX

Dual/Joint/Adjunct Appointment

Associate Professor, Center for Molecular and Cellular Toxicology (CMCT), College of Pharmacy, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX

Research Interests

The focus of my laboratory is elucidating the biological role of arginine methylation - a modification that has been implicated in nuclear export, transcriptional control and DNA repair. We have generated targeted disruptions of the arginine methyltransferase genes in the mouse to further understanding the biological role of this post-translational modification. One of the arginine methyltransferases we have knocked-out is CARM1. This enzyme associates with the p160 family of nuclear hormone receptor coactivators. Using this genetic approach, we have shown the critical nature of CARM1 in estrogen responsive gene expression. Additional studies are currently underway to probe the essential role of CARM1 in estrogen-mediated transcriptional activation.

My laboratory is also developing novel molecular approaches to facilitate the study of protein-protein interactions in proteomic era. We have generated functional protein-domain microarrays and used them to identify and characterize novel protein interactions. Currently, our main interest in this regard is attempting to read the “histone code”. Using a combination of macro- and microarray approaches, we are identifying new proteins that interact with lysine methylated histone tails. In addition, we are also using proteomic approaches to identify new substrates for enzymes such as arginine methyltransferases and kinases.


Office Address

Email: mtbedford@mdanderson.org

Education & Training

Degree-Granting Education

1996 Weizmann Institute of Science, Israel, PHD, Developmental Biology
1989 University of Stellenbosch, South Africa, MS, Medical Biochemistry
1986 University of Stellenbosch, South Africa, BS, Honors in Biochemistry
1985 University of Stellenbosch, South Africa, BS

Postgraduate Training

1996-2000 Postdoctoral Fellowship, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, Dr. Philip Leder

Selected Publications

Peer-Reviewed Original Research Articles
1. Chang Y, Zhang X, Horton JR, Upadhyay AK, Spannhoff A, Liu J, Snyder JP, Bedford MT, Cheng X. Structural basis for G9a-like protein lysine methyltransferase inhibition by BIX-01294. Nat Struct Mol Biol 16(3):312-7, 3/2009. e-Pub 2/2009. PMCID: PMC2676930.
2. Bedford MT, Clarke SG. Protein arginine methylation in mammals: Who, what, and why. Mol Cell 33(1):1-13, 1/2009. NIHMSID: NIHMS92204.
3. Schotta G, Sengupta R, Kubicek S, Malin S, Kauer M, Callen E, Celeste A, Pagani M, Opravil S, De La Rosa-Velazquez IA, Espejo A, Bedford MT, Nussenzweig A, Busslinger M, Jenuwein T. A chromatin-wide transition to H4K20 monomethylation impairs genome integrity and programmed DNA rearrangements in the mouse. Genes Dev 22(15):2048-61, 8/2008. PMCID: PMC2492754.
4. Iberg AN, Espejo A, Cheng D, Kim D, Michaud-Levesque J, Richard S, Bedford MT. Arginine methylation of the histone H3 tail impedes effector binding. J Biol Chem 283(6):3006-10, 2/2008. PMID: 18077460.
5. Yadav N, Cheng D, Richard S,Morel M, Iyer VR, Aldaz CM, Bedford MT. CARM1 promotes adipocyte differentiation by coactivating PPARgamma. EMBO Rep 9(2):193-8, 2/2008. PMCID: PMC2246418.
6. Huang J, Sengupta R, Espejo AB, Lee MG, Dorsey JA, Richter M, Opravil S, Shiekhattar R, Bedford MT, Jenuwein T, Berger SL. p53 is regulated by the lysine demethylase LSD1. Nature 449(7158):105-9, 9/2007. PMID: 17805299.
7. Swiercz R, Cheng D, Kim D, Bedford MT. Ribosomal protein rpS2 is hypomethylated in PRMT3-deficient mice. J Biol Chem 282(23):16917-23, 6/2007. PMID: 17439947.
8. Cheng D, Cote J, Shaaban S, Bedford MT. The arginine methyltransferase CARM1 regulates the coupling of transcription and mRNA processing. Mol Cell 25(1):71-83, 1/2007. PMID: 17218272.
9. Huang Y, Fang J, Bedford MT, Zhang Y, Xu RM. Recognition of histone H3 lysine-4 methylation by the double tudor domain of JMJD2A. Science 312(5774):748-51, 5/2006. PMID: 16601153.
10. Kim J, Daniel J, Espejo A, Lake A, Krishna M, Xia L, Zhang Y, Bedford MT. Tudor, MBT and chromo domains gauge the degree of lysine methylation. EMBO Rep 7(4):397-403, 4/2006. PMCID: PMC1456902.
11. Lee J, Sayegh J, Daniel J, Clarke S, Bedford MT. PRMT8, a new membrane-bound tissue-specific member of the protein arginine methyltransferase family. J Biol Chem 280(38):32890-6, 9/2005. PMID: 16051612.

Last updated: 8/10/2009