Tony Dufour

since 08/2017: Assistant Professor at the University of Calgary, Canada

Email: antoine.dufour (a) ucalgary.ca

 

Post-doctoral fellow in the Overall Lab (2011-2017)
Funded by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR)

Centre for Blood Research
University of British Columbia
#4420-2350 Health Sciences Mall
Vancouver, BC, V6T 1Z3, Canada

 

Professional Activities

Gordon Research Seminar (GRS) Chair; “Proteolytic Enzymes & Their Inhibitors”, June 21-22, 2014, Il Ciocco, Barga Lucca, Italy.

Education

  • 2003-2005: B.A. Chemistry, S.U.N.Y. Oswego, NY
  • 2005-2010: Ph.D. Chemistry, Stony Brook University, NY
  • 2010-present: Postdoctoral Fellow, Biochemistry, University of British Columbia, BC

Research Interest

Development of novel therapeutics for the treatment of viral infections, inflammatory diseases and cancer, proteomics and degradomics, roles of proteases in diseases, molecular signaling involved in cytoskeletal rearrangement and cell motility, tumor microenvironment, investigation of novel drugs in animal models, mechanism underlying migration of cancer cells, high-throughput drug screening.

Publications

  • Marchant D, Bellac C, Moraes TJ, Wadsworth S, Dufour A, Butler G, Cheung C, Ng J, Luo Z, Garmaroudi F, Heilbron K, Karpov A, Devel L, Georgiadis D, Dive V, Hegele R, Luo H, McManus B, and Overall C (2014) MMP12−A Metalloproteinase Transcription Factor with Antiviral Activity. Nature Medicine 20(5):493-502. doi: 10.1038/nm.3508.
  • Evensen N, Kuscu C, Zarrabi K, Dufour A, Kadam P, Hu Y, Nguyen H, Pulkoski-Gross A, Bahou W, Zucker S, Cao J (2013) Unraveling the Role of KIAA1199, A Novel Endoplasmic Reticulum Protein, in Cancer Cell Migration. J. Natl. Cancer Inst. 105(18):1402-16. doi: 10.1093/jnci/djt224.
  • Dufour A, and Overall CM (2013) Missing the target: Matrix Metalloproteinase Anti-Targets in Inflammation and Cancer. Trends in Pharmacological Sciences 34(4);233-242.
  • Starr AE, Dufour A, Maier J, Overall CM (2012) Biochemical analysis of matrix metalloproteinase activation of chemokines CCL15 and CCL23 and increased glycosaminoglycan binding of CCL16. Journal of Biological Chemistry 287(8):5848-60.
  • Starr AE, Bellac CL, Dufour A, Goebeler V, Overall CM (2012) Biochemical Characterization and N-terminomics Analysis of Leukolysin, the Membrane-type 6 Matrix Metalloprotease (MMP25): chemokine and vimentin cleavages enhance cell migration and macrophage phagocytic activities. Journal of Biological Chemistry 287(16):13382-95.
  • Dufour A, Sampson N, Rizzo R, DeLeon J, Li J, Kuscu C, Zhi J, Jaber N, Liu E, Zucker S, Cao J (2011) Small molecule anti-cancer therapy targets the hemopexin domain of Matrix Metal loproteinase-9 (MMP-9). Cancer Research 71(14):4977-88.
  • Pavlaki M, Zucker S, Dufour A, Calabrese N, Bahou W, Cao J (2011) Furin functions as a nonproteolytic chaperone for Matrix Metalloproteinase-28: MMP-28 propeptide sequence requirement. Biochemistry Research International 2011:630319.
  • Dufour A, Zarrabi K, Schmidt C, Kozarekar P, Zucker S, Cao J (2010) Inhibition of matrix metalloproteinase 14 (MMP-14)-mediated cancer cell migration. Journal of Biological Chemistry 286(38):33167-77.
  • Dufour A, Sampson N, Kuscu C, Zucker S, Cao J (2010) Role of Matrix Metalloproteinase-9 (MMP-9) dimers in cell migration: design of inhibitory peptides. Journal of Biological Chemistry 285 (46): 35944-56.
  • Meredith J, Dufour A, Bruch M, (2009) Comparison of the structure and dynamics of the antibiotic peptide polymyxin B and the inactive nonapeptide in aqueous trifluoroethanol by NMR spectroscopy. Journal of Physical Chemistry B 113(2): 544-551.
  • Zucker S, Schmidt C, Dufour A, Kaplab R. Park H, Jiang, W (2009) ProMMP-2:TIMP-1 complexes identified in plasma of healty individuals. Connective Tissue Research 50(4): 223-231.
  • Botchkina I, Rowehl R, Rivadeneira D, Karpeh M, Crawford H, Dufour A, Ju J, Wang Y, Leyfman Y, Botchkina G (2009) Phenotypic Subpopulations of Metastatic Colon Cancer Stem Cells: Genomic Analysis. Cancer Genomics & Proteomics, 6 (1): 19-29.
  • Dufour A, Sampson N, Zucker S, Cao J (2008) Role of the hemopexin domain of matrix metalloproteinases in cell migration. Journal of Cellular Phyisiology 217(3): 643-651.
  • Rowehl R, Crawford H, Dufour A, Ju J, Botchkina G (2008) Genomic Analysis of Prostate Cancer Stem Cells Isolated from a Highly Metastatic Cell Line. Cancer Genomics & Proteomics 5(6): 301-10.

Book Chapters and other publications

  • Dufour A and Overall C Subtracting the matrix out of the equation: matrix metalloproteinases in immunity and diseases. From Biological Mechanisms to Therapeutic Opportunities, 1st edition, Hoboken, NJ, U.S.A., John Wiley & Sons, 2014.
  • Dufour A and Overall C Cellular Downward Dog: The Yoga limits of cell migration through the matrix International Society for Matrix Biology (ISMB) newsletter, November 2013.
  • Dufour A and Overall C Rock, paper and molecular scissors: a story of ECM remodeling and beyond. Extracellular Matrix: Pathobiology and Signaling, 1st edition, Berlin, Germany, Walter de Gruyter GMBH & CO. kg, 2012.

Intellectual Patents

  • Title: Compositions and methods for inhibiting MMP-9-mediated cell migration
    Inventors: Antoine Dufour, Jian Cao and Stanley Zucker
    Owners: This invention was made with government support under grant 5RO1CA11355301A1, awarded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH). The government has certain rights in the invention. Stony Brook University also has rights in this invention.
    USA patent No.: submitted patent STONYB-16639.