Office
(631) 216-2904
Email
Cungui.Mao@stonybrookmedicine.edu
Stony Brook Cancer Center
MART Building, Room 9M-0834
Lauterbur Drive
Stony Brook, NY 11794-7294
Cungui Mao, PhD
Professor, Department of Medicine,
Renaissance School of Medicine at Stony Brook University
Research Program
Lipid Signaling and Metabolism in CancerDepartment
Department of MedicineResearch Interest
Dr. Mao has been working on the metabolism and signaling functions of bioactive lipids, sphingolipids in particular, in different species, such as yeast, insects, and mammals for two decades. Dr. Mao and his associates have identified and cloned numerous genes encoding enzymes responsible the metabolism of sphingolipids, including two yeast sphingosine-1-phosphate (S1P) phosphatases (YSR2 and YSR3), two yeast alkaline ceramidases (YPC1 and YDC1), one Drosophila alkaline ceramidase (DaCER1), three mouse alkaline ceramidases (Acer1, Acer2, and Acer3), and three human alkaline ceramidases (ACER1, ACER2, and ACER3). Dr. Mao’s group has demonstrated that these enzymes play important roles in regulating bioactive sphingolipids implicated in various biological processes.
His research achievements are highlighted as follows:
1) Yeast YSR2 and YSR3 regulate heat stress response and cell cycle progression in yeast cells.
2) Yeast YPC1 and YDC1 regulate heat stress response, cell cycle progression, and chronological life span.
3) Drosophila melanogaster DaCER1 regulates oxidative stress response and longevity.
4) Acer1/ACER1 regulates epidermal keratinocyte differentiation and proliferation, epidermal barrier function, and hair follicle stem cell homeostasis.
5) Acer2/ACER2 regulates the integrity of the placental vasculature, the homeostasis of sphingoid bases and their phosphates in the circulation and peripheral tissues, cellular responses to various forms of stress, including nutrient deprivation and DNA damage.
6) Acer3/ACER3 regulates the homeostasis of sphingolipids in the central nervous system, neuronal aging, inflammation, tumorigenesis, and non-alcoholic steatohepatitis.
Education
PhD: East China Normal University (ECNU) and Shanghai Institute of Biochemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, ChinaPostdoctoral training: Duke University, Durham, North Carolina, Dr. Lina Obeid’s laboratory