Yoontae Lee, Ph.D., Post-doc

Phone: 713-798-7827
E-mail: yoontael@bcm.edu

Joined the lab: January 2007

Education:
1994-2001 B.S. Seoul National University, Korea
2001-2003 M.S. Seoul National University, Korea
2003-2006 Ph.D. Seoul National University, Korea

Project: Analysis of Ataxin-1 and Ataxin-1L double knock-out mice

SCA1 is a gain of function disease caused by expansion of polyglutamine tract in the Ataxin-1 protein. While a pathogenesis of SCA1 has been intensively studied using transgenic and knock-in mice  expressing mutant Ataxin-1 proteins, little is known about the endogenous function of Ataxin-1.   Ataxin-1 knock-out mice show minimal behavioral phenotypes and never recapitulate SCA1 phenotype, suggesting that other factor(s) might compensate its endogenous function.
Recently, our lab generated Ataxin-1L, a homologue of Ataxin-1, knock-out mice and is ready to get the Ataxin-1 and -1L double knock-out mice.  The goal of my project is to understand endogenous functions of Ataxin-1 and -1L proteins by analysis of this mouse.

Selected publications:

1. Lee, Y., Jeon, K.P., Lee, J.T., Kim, S and Kim, V.N., MicroRNA maturation: stepwise processing and subcellular localization. EMBO Journal. 2002; 21:4663-4670.
2. Lee, Y., Ahn, C., Han, J., Choi, H., Kim, J., Yim, J., Lee, J., Provost, P., Rådmark, O., Kim, S., and Kim, V.N., The Nuclear RNase III Drosha Initiates MicroRNA Processing. Nature.  2003; 425:415-419.
3. Lee, Y., Kim, M.J., Han, J., Yeom, K-H., Lee, S.H., Baek, S.H. and Kim, V.N. MicoRNA genes are transcribed by RNA polymerase II. EMBO Journal. 2004; 23:4051-4060.
4. Han, J.*, Lee, Y.*, Yeom, K-H, Kim, Y-K, Jin, H, and Kim, V.N. (*co-first authors) The Drosha-DGCR8 complex in primary microRNA processing. Genes and Development. 2004; 18:3016-3027.
5. Lee, Y.*, Hur, I.*, Park, S.-Y.*, Kim, Y.-K., Suh, M.R., and Kim, V.N. (*co-first authors) The role of PACT in the RNA silencing pathway. EMBO Journal. 2006; 25:522-532.
6. Han, J. *, Lee, Y. *, Yeom, K-H. *, Nam, J-W., Heo, I., Rhee, J-K., Sohn, S.Y., Cho, Y., Zhang, B-T., and Kim, V. N. (*co-first authors) Molecular basis for the recognition of primary microRNAs by the Drosha-DGCR8 complex. Cell. 2006; 125:887.
7. Lee, Y., Samaco, R. C., Gatchel, J.R., Thaller, C., Orr, H.T. and Zoghbi, H.Y. miR-19, miR-101, and miR-130 co-regulate ATXN1 levels to potentially modulate SCA1 pathogenesis. Nature Neuroscience. 2008; 11:1137-9