Research Department

Molecular Biology Core Facilities

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Biography

Paul T Morrison is a Principal Scientist (since 2004) and Director of the Molecular Biology Core Facilities (since 1992) at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Director of the Molecular Biology/ Genomics Core Facility, Center for AIDS Research at Harvard University (since 2004) and a  Principal Associate in the department of Biological Chemistry and Molecular Pharmacology at Harvard Medical School (since 1996). The core's focus on both proteomics (mass spectrometry) as well as genomics (DNA sequencing, next generation). Prior to directing the core facilities he purified  and sequenced proteins active in DNA recombination in Escherichia coli while a technician in the laboratory of Richard Kolodner. He earned his BS degree in Botany from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst. 

Select Publications

• James AA, Morrison PT, and Kolodner R.  Genetic recombination of bacterial plasmid DNA. Analysis of the effect of recombination-deficient mutations on plasmid recombination.  J Mol Biol 1982; 160:411-430.
• Doherty MJ, Morrison PT, and Kolodner R.  Genetic recombination of bacterial plasmid DNA. Physical and genetic analysis of the products of plasmid recombination in Escherichia coli.  J Mol Biol 1983; 167:539-560.
• James AA, Morrison PT, and Kolodner R.  Isolation of genetic elements that increase frequencies of plasmid recombinants.  Nature 1983; 303:256-259. 
• Symington LS, Morrison PT, and Kolodner R.  Genetic recombination catalyzed by cell-free extracts of Saccharomyces cerevisiae.  Cold Spring Harbor Symp Quant Biol 1984; 49:805-814.
• Symington L, Morrison PT, and Kolodner R.  Intramolecular recombination of linear DNA catalyzed by the Escherichia coli RecE recombination pathway.  J Mol Biol 1985; 186:515-525.
• Symington LS, Morrison PT, and Kolodner R.  Plasmid recombination intermediates in a Saccharomyces cerevisiae cell-free recombination system.  Mol Cell Biol 1985; 5:2361-2368. 
• Kolodner R, Evans DH, and Morrison PT.  Purification and characterization of an activity from Saccharomyces cerevisiae that catalyzes homologous pairing and strand exchange.  Proc Natl Acad Sci 1987; 84:5560-5564.
• Morrison PT, Lovett ST, Gilson L, and Kolodner R. Molecular analysis of the Escherichia coli recO gene.  J Bacteriol 1989; 171:3641-3649.
• Morrison PT. Remote Control, New high-tech services help cancer researchers pry into genes, browse for information worldwide - and work from home. Physicians And Computers 1993; 10:No.9:36-39.
• Kolodner RD, Hall NR, Lipford JR, Kane MF, Rao MRS, Morrison PT, Wirth L, Finan PJ, Burn J, Chapman P, Earabino C, Merchant E, Bishop DT, Garber J, Bronner CE, Baker SM, Warren G, Smith LG, Lindblom A, Tannergard P, Bollag RJ, Godwin AR, Ward DC, Nordenskjold M, Liskay RM, Copeland N, Jenkins J, Lescoe MK, Ewel A, Lee S, Griffith J, and Fishel R. Human mismatch repair genes and their association with hereditary non-polyposis colon cancer.  Cold Spring Harbor Symp Quant Biol 1994; 59:331-338.
• Adra CN, Lelias JM, Kobayashi H, Kaghad M, Morrison PT, Rowley JD, Lim B. Cloning of the cDNA for a hematopoietic cell-specific protein related to CD20 and the beta subunit of the high-affinity IgE receptor: Evidence for a family of proteins with four membrane-spanning regions. Proc Natl Acad Sci 1994; 91:10178-10182.
• Bronner CE, Baker SM, Morrison PT, Warren G, Smith LG, Lescoe MK, Kane M, Earibino C, Lipford R, Lindblom A, Tannergod P, Bollag RJ, Godwin AR, Ward DC, Nordenskjold M, Fishel R, Kolodner R, and Liskay RM. Mutation in the DNA mismatch repair gene homologue hMLH1 is associated with hereditary nonpolyposis colon cancer linked to chromosome 3p. Nature 1994; 368:258-261.
• Kolodner RD, Hall NR, Lipford J, Kane MF, Rao MRS, Morrison PT, Wirth L, Finan PJ, Burn J, Chapman P, Earibino C, Merchant E, Bishop DT. Structure of the human MSH2 locus and analysis of two Muire-Torre kindreds for msh2 mutations. Genomics 1994; 24:516-526.
• Borresen A-L, Lothe RA, Meling GI, Lystad S, Morrison PT, Lipford JR, Kane MF, Rognum TO, and Kolodner RD.  Somatic mutations in the hMSH2 gene in microsatellite unstable colorectal tumors. Human Molecular Genetics 1995; 11:2065-2072.
• Kolodner RD, Hall NR, Lipford JR, Kane MF, Morrison PT, Finan PJ, Burn J, Chapman P, Earabino C, Merchant E, and Bishop, DT.  Structure of the human MLH1 locus and analysis of a large hereditary nonpolyposis colorectal carcinoma kindred for mlh1 mutations.  Cancer Research 1995; 55:242-248.
• Adams PS, Dolejsi MK, Hardin S, Mische S, Nanthakumar B, Riethman H, Rush J, and Morrison PT. DNA sequencing of a moderately difficult template: evaluation of results from a thermus thermophilus unknown test sample. Association of Biomolecular Resource Facilities DNA Sequence Committee. BioTechniques 1996; 21:678.
• Adams PS, Dolejsi, MK, Grills G, McMinimy D, Morrison PT, Rush J, Goff, S, Milnamow M, Morgan A, Karlovitz MA, Dial CE, and Hardin S. An analysis of techniques used to improve the accuracy of automated DNA Sequencing of a GC-rich template. Journal of Biomolecular Techniques  1998;9(4):9-18
• Morrison PT. A Snapshot of the 10th International Genome Sequencing and Analysis Conference. Journal of Biomolecular Techniques 1998; 9:36-37.
• Zhou D, Kou Z, Ibegbu C, Shen Y, Lee-Parritz D, Shen L, Sehgal PK, McClure HM, Morrison P, Bogle C, Sehgal N, Nahmias AJ, Chen ZW. The disruption of macaque CD4+ T-cell repertoires during the early simian immunodeficiency virus infection. J Med Primatol. 1999 Aug-Oct;28(4-5):174-80.
• Chen ZW, Shen Y, Kou Z, Ibegbu C, Zhou D, Shen L, Morrison P, Bogle C, McClure HM, Nahmias AJ, Sehgal PK, Letvin NL. Prolonged dominance of clonally restricted CD4(+) T cells in macaques infected with simian immunodeficiency viruses. J Virol. 2000 Aug;74(16):7442-50.
• Sattler M, Pisick E, Morrison PT, Salgia R. Role of the cytoskeletal protein paxillin in oncogenesis. Crit Rev Oncog. 2000;11(1):63-76. Review.
• Maulik G, Kijima T, Ma PC, Ghosh SK, Lin J, Shapiro GI, Schaefer E, Tibaldi E, Johnson BE, Salgia R. Modulation of the c-Met/hepatocyte growth factor pathway in small cell lung cancer. Clin Cancer Res. 2002 Feb;8(2):620-7.
• Maulik G, Shrikhande A, Kijima T, Ma PC, Morrison PT, Salgia R. Role of the hepatocyte growth factor receptor, c-Met, in oncogenesis and potential for therapeutic inhibition. Cytokine Growth Factor Rev. 2002 Feb;13(1):41-59.
• Solomon KR, Sharma P, Chan M, Morrison PT, Finberg RW. CD109 represents a novel branch of the alpha2 macroglobulin/complement gene family. Gene. 2004 Mar 3;327(2):171-83. 
• Zúñiga J, Ilzarbe M, Acunha-Alonzo V, Rosetti F, Herbert Z, Romero V, Almeciga I, Clavijo O, Stern JN, Granados J, Fridkis-Hareli M, Morrison P, Azocar J, Yunis EJ. Allele frequencies for 15 autosomal STR loci and admixture estimates in Puerto Rican Americans. Forensic Sci Int. 2006 Dec 20;164(2-3):266-70. Epub 2006 Jan 19.