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Dr. Mika Jekabsons

Associate Professor
Department of Biology
The University of Mississippi

Contact:

Office: 110 Shoemaker Hall
E-mail: jekabson@olemiss.edu
Telephone: (662) 915-3998
FAX: (662) 915-5144

 

Research Interests:

  • Mitochondrial bioenergetics
  • Mitochondrial function within cells
  • The role of mitochondria in apoptotic and necrotic cell death
3.5KBSA Z3 interative

Live neurons stained with the calcium indicator FURA PE3 (green) and the mitochondrial indicator TMRM (red)

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Classes Currently Teaching:

Bisc 330: Physiology
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Education:

Ph.D. (Physiology) University of California Davis (1999). Research topic: uncoupling proteins and obesity
B.S. (Applied Physiology) Humboldt State University, Arcata, California (1989)

Postdoctoral fellow Jan 2000-May 2002: Medical Research Council, Dunn Human Nutrition Unit, Cambridge, England. Research topic: uncoupling proteins

Postdoctoral fellow Jun 2002-July 2005: Buck Institute for Age Research, Novato, California. Research topic: neuronal cell death and mitochondrial bioenergetics
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Recent publications:

N.M.C. Connolly, P. Theurey, V. Adam-Vizi, N.G. Bazan, P. Bernardi, J.P. Bolaños, C. Culmsee, V.L. Dawson, M. Deshmukh, M.R. Duchen, H. Düssmann, G.M. Fiskum, M.F. Galindo, G.E. Hardingham, J.M. Hardwick, M.B. Jekabsons, E.A. Jonas, J. Jordán, S.A. Lipton, G. Manfredi, M.P. Mattson, B. McLaughlin, A. Methner, A.N. Murphy, M.P. Murphy, D.G. Nicholls, B.M. Polster, T. Pozzan, R. Rizzuto, R.S. Slack, J. Satrústegui, R.A. Swanson, R. Swerdlow, Y. Will, Z. Ying, A. Joselin, A. Gioran, C.M. Pinho, O. Watters, M. Salvucci, I. Llorente-Folch, D.S. Park, D. Bano, M. Ankarcrona, P. Pizzo, J.H.M. Prehn. Guidelines on experimental methods to assess mitochondrial dysfunction in cellular models of neurodegenerative diseases. Cell Death Differ. 25: 542-572, 2018.

M.B. Jekabsons, H.M. Gebril, Y.H. Wang, B. Avula, I.A. Khan. Updates to a 13C metabolic flux analysis model for evaluating energy metabolism in cultured cerebellar granule neurons from neonatal rats. Neurochem. Int. 109: 54-67, 2017.

H.M. Gebril, B. Avula, Y.H. Wang, I.A. Khan, and M.B. Jekabsons. 13C Metabolic flux analysis in neurons utilizing a model that accounts for hexose phosphate recycling within the pentose phosphate pathway.Neurochem. Int. 93: 26-39, 2016.

F. Mahdi, J.B. Morgan, W. Liu, A.K. Agarwal, M.B. Jekabsons, Y. Liu, Y.D. Zhou, and D.G. Nagle. Sampangine (a copyrine alkaloid) exerts biological activities through cellular redox cycling of its quinone and semiquinone intermediates. J. Nat. Prod. 78: 3018-3023, 2015.

J.B. Morgan, Y. Liu, V. Coothankandaswamy, F. Mahdi, M.B. Jekabsons, W.H. Gerwick, F.A. Valeriote, Y.D. Zhou, and D.G. Nagle. Kalkitoxin inhibits angiogenesis, disrupts cellular hypoxic signaling, and blocks mitochondrial electron transport in tumor cells. Mar. Drugs. 13: 1552-1568, 2015

S. Datta, F. Mahdi, Z. Ali, M.B. Jekabsons, I.A. Khan, D.G. Nagle, and Y.D. Zhou. Toxins in botanical dietary supplements: blue cohosh components disrupt cellular respiration and mitochondrial membrane potential. J. Nat. Prod. 77: 111-117, 2014

J. Li, F. Mahdi, L. Du, M.B. Jekabsons, Y.D. Zhou, and D.G. Nagle. Semisynthetic studies identify mitochondria poisons from botanical dietary supplements: geranyloxycoumarins from Aegle marmelos. Bioorg. Med. Chem. 21: 1795-1803, 2013.

S. Datta, J. Li, F. Mahdi, M.B. Jekabsons, D.G. Nagle, and Y.D. Zhou. Glycolysis inhibitor screening identifies the bis-geranylacylphloroglucinol protonophore moronone from Moronobea coccinea. J. Nat. Prod. 75: 2216-2222, 2012.

L. Du, F. Mahdi, S. Datta, M.B. Jekabsons, Y.D. Zhou, and D.G. Nagle. Structures and Mechanisms of Antitumor Agents – Xestoquinones Uncouple Cellular Respiration and Disrupt HIF Signaling in Human Breast Tumor Cells. J. Nat. Prod. 75: 1553-1559, 2012.

D.B. Huckabee and M.B. Jekabsons. Identification of Bax-voltage dependent anion channel 1 complexes in digitonin solubilized cerebellar granule neurons. J. Neurochem., 119: 1137-1150, 2011.

L. Du, F. Mahdi, M.B. Jekabsons, D.G. Nagle, and Y.D. Zhou. Natural and Semisynthetic Mammea-Type Isoprenylated Dihydroxycoumarins Uncouple Cellular Respiration. J. Nat. Prod. 74: 240-248, 2011.

L. Du, F. Mahdi, M.B. Jekabsons, D.G. Nagle, and Y.-D. Zhou. Mammea E/BB, an Isoprenylated Dihydroxycoumarin Protonophore That Potently Uncouples Mitochondrial Electron Transport, Disrupts Hypoxic Signaling in Tumor Cells. J. Nat. Prod. 73: 1868-1872, 2010.

J.B. Morgan, F. Mahdi, Y. Liu, V. Coothankandaswamy, M.B. Jekabsons, T.A. Johnson, K.V. Sashidhara, P. Crews, D.G. Nagle, and Y.-D. Zhou. The Marine Sponge Metabolite Mycothiazole: A Novel Prototype Mitochondrial Complex I Inhibitor. Bioorg. Med. Chem., 18: 5988-5994, 2010

V.Coothankandaswamy , Y. Liu, S.C. Mao, J.B. Morgan, F. Madhi, M.B. Jekabsons, D.G. Nagle, and Y.D Zhou. The Alternative Medicine Pawpaw and Its Acetogenin Constituents Suppress Tumor Angiogenesis via the HIF-1/VEGF Pathway. J. Nat. Prod., 73: 956-961, 2010.

Y. Liu, J.B. Morgan, V. Coothankandaswamy, R. Liu, M.B. Jekabsons, F. Madhi, D.G. Nagle, and Y.D. Zhou. The Caulerpa pigment caulerpin inhibits HIF-1 activation and mitochondrial respiration. J. Nat. Prod., 72(12), 2104-2109, 2009.

S.C. Mao, Y. Liu, J.B. Morgan, M.B. Jekabsons, Y.D. Zhou, and D. Nagle. Lipophilic 2,5-Disubstituted Pyrroles from the Marine Sponge Mycale sp. Inhibit Mitochondrial Respiration and HIF-1 Activation. J. Nat. Prod., 72(11), 1927-1936, 2009.

Jekabsons, M.B. A systems biology approach to investigating apoptotic stimuli as effectors of cell metabolism: practical application of top-down control analysis to attached neurons. Int. J. Mol. Sci. 10(2): 702-722, 2009.

Liu, Y., C.K. Veena, J.B. Morgan, K.A. Mohammed, M.B. Jekabsons, D.G. Nagle, and Y.D. Zhou. Methylalpinumisoflavone inhibits hypoxia-inducible factor-1 (HIF-1) activation by simultaneously targeting multiple pathways. J. Biol. Chem. 284(9): 5859-5868, 2009.

Liu, Y., R. Liu, S.C. Mao, J.B. Morgan, M.B. Jekabsons, Y.D. Zhou, and D.G. Nagle. Molecular-targeted antitumor agents 19: furospongolide from a marine Lendenfeldia sp. Sponge inhibits hypoxia-inducible factor-1 (HIF-1) activation in breast tumor cells. J. Nat. Prod. 71(11), pp. 1854-1860, 2008.

Nicholls, D.G., L.I. Johnson-Cadwell, S. Vesce, M.B. Jekabsons, and N. Yadava. Bioenergetics of mitochondria in cultured neurons and their role in glutamate excitotoxicity. J. Neurosci. Res. 85(15): 3206-3212, 2007.

Johnson-Cadwell, L.I., M.B. Jekabsons, A. Wang, B.M. Polster, and D.G. Nicholls. ‘Mild Uncoupling’ does not decrease mitochondrial superoxide levels in cultured cerebellar granule neurons but decreases spare respiratory capacity and increases toxicity to glutamate and oxidative stress. J. Neurochem. 101(6): 1619-1631, 2007

Oliveira, J., M.B. Jekabsons, S. Chen, A. Lin, C. Rego, J. Gonçalves, L.M. Ellerby, and D.G. Nicholls. Mitochondrial dysfunction in Huntington’s disease: the bioenergetics of isolated and in-situ mitochondria from transgenic mice. J. Neurochem., 101(1): 241-249, 2007.

Jekabsons, M.B. and D.G. Nicholls. Bioenergetic analysis of cerebellar granule neurons undergoing apoptosis by potassium/serum deprivation. Cell Death Differ., 13(9): 1595-1610, 2006
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Grants:

National Institutes of Health, National Cancer Institute, Co-PI with Yu-Dong Zhou (UM Biochemistry). Funding period: July 2016-2019. Topic: Anti-metastatic drug discovery that targets metabolic plasticity.

National Institutes of Health, National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke. Funding period: July 2008-June 2011. Topic: Regulation of the pro-apoptotic protein Bax during neuronal apoptosis.