Lisa M. Landino

Professor of Chemistry

B.S. Nazareth College, Rochester, New York. (Chemistry & French) 1989 Ph.D. Department of Chemistry, University of Virginia, May 1994 Graduate Advisor: Tim L. Macdonald Postdoctoral Fellow, Department of Biochemistry Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, July 1994- June 1997 Postdoctoral Advisor: Larry Marnett

Contact Info

Department of Chemistry The College of William and Mary P.O. Box 8795 Williamsburg, VA 23187

Office: Integrated Science Center 1283 Email: lmland@wm.edu

Teaching

Fall 2023

Advanced Biochemistry (Chem 415) and General Chem I lab (Chem 103L)

Spring 2024

General Chemistry II (Chem 208) and General Chemistry II lab (Chem 254)

Other courses frequently taught: Biochemistry (Chem 314), Advanced freshman chemistry (Chem 205), Biochemistry lab (Chem 420)

Research

The most exciting new research involves photochemical reactions of catechols, a class of molecules that include dopamine and catechin, a green tea antioxidant. Para-quinones like Coenzyme Q are also of interest for our photochemistry work. They can be photoreduced using chlorophyll metabolites and red light. Redox reactions of these molecules can be both protective when they function as antioxidants and possibly harmful when they produce reactive oxygen species.

Common techniques used in the lab are: colorimetric assays to study oxidation and reduction reactions, column chromatography for modified glutathione isolation, labeling of proteins with fluorescent molecules, reverse phase HPLC, and UV/Visible spectroscopy.

For many years, my research focused on oxidative damage to proteins and its role in neurodegeneration and aging. Oxidative damage contributes to the development of many diseases including Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s. We focused on tubulin and its associated proteins including tau and MAP-2. Tau forms neurofibrillary tangles (NFTs) inside neurons that are a hallmark of Alzheimer’s disease.

More recently we studied glycolytic enzymes especially pyruvate kinase, GAPDH and lactate dehydrogenase (LDH-A) to assess their sensitivity to oxidants. A recent paper describes our work with LDH-A and the oxidants, singlet oxygen and HOCl.

The new work is related to neurodegeneration because antioxidants have been viewed as protective against diseases of aging. Our more chemistry-focused work is doable for undergraduate students with limited research experience. The work also may be applicable for studying aquatic ecosystems where free chlorophyll accumulates when algae and phytoplankton decompose.

Recent funding

William & Mary Green Fee Award “Connecting dietary chlorophyll, sunlight, and increased antioxidants to healthy aging” Funding for lab supplies. April 2021-April 2022.

NIH-AREA Award renewal (2R15 NS038885-05) “Peroxynitrite Damage to Microtubule Proteins” 7/1/11-8/31/16, $415,200 National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS).

Select publications (undergraduate students underlined)

Lisa M. Landino, Lydia E. Boike, Taylor K. Lain “Inhibition of lactate dehydrogenase-A by singlet oxygen and hypochlorous acid via cysteine oxidation and irreversible conformational changes (2024) BioChem, 4(1), 18-37.

Lisa M. Landino, Zachary T. Shuckrow, Alexander S. Mooney, Claire O. Lauderback, Kristen E. Lorenzi. ”Photo-oxidation and photoreduction of catechols by chlorophyll metabolites and methylene blue” (2022) Chem. Res. Toxicol. https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.chemrestox.2c00142 PMID: 36044382

Lisa M. Landino, Tara D. Hagedorn and Kelly L. Kennett “Evidence for thiol/disulfide exchange reactions between tubulin and glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase” Cytoskeleton (Wiley) 71 (2014), pp. 707-718.

Hillary M. Clark, Tara D. Hagedorn and Lisa M. Landino “Hypothiocyanous acid oxidation of tubulin cysteines inhibits microtubule polymerization” Archives of Biochemistry and Biophysics (Elsevier) 541C (2014), pp. 67-73.

Lisa M. Landino, Tara D. Hagedorn, Shannon B. Kim, Katherine M. Hogan Inhibition of tubulin polymerization by hypochlorous acid and chloramines, (2011) Free Radical Biology and Medicine 50, 1000-1008.

Lisa M. Landino, Carolyn M. Brown, Carolyn A. Edson, Laura J. Gilbert, Nathan Grega-Larson, Anna Jean Wirth, Kelly C. Lane, Fluorescein-labeled glutathione to study protein S-glutathionylation, (2010) Analytical Biochemistry 402, 102-104.

Lisa M. Landino (2008) Protein thiol modification by peroxynitrite anion and nitric oxide donors in Methods in Enzymology Nitric oxide Part F (Cadenas and Packer, Eds.) volume 440, pp. 95-109, Elsevier Inc. San Diego, CA.

Lisa M. Landino, Catherine B. Mall, Joshua J. Nicklay, Sarah K. Dutcher and Katherine L. Moynihan, Oxidation of 5-thio-2-nitrobenzoic acid, by the biologically-relevant oxidants peroxynitrite anion, hydrogen peroxide and hypochlorous acid, (2008) Nitric Oxide 18, 11-18.

Lisa M. Landino, Maria T. Koumas, Courtney E. Mason, Jane A. Alston Modification of tubulin cysteines by nitric oxide and nitroxyl donors alters tubulin polymerization activity, (2007) Chem. Res. Toxicol.20 (11), 1693-1700.