Jessica Gumerson, PhD

My research has centered on understanding the underlying cellular mechanisms and identifying novel treatments for neurodegenerative, neuromuscular, and inflammatory diseases. My current focus has been on developing gene therapies for diseases that affect the eye like uveitis, retinitis pigmentosa, and age-related macular degeneration.

Earlier in my career I studied muscular dystrophies associated with mutations in dysferlin and members of the dystrophin-glycoprotein complex. While these are very different diseases from those that affect the eye, the underlying cell biology share common features. For example, inherited mutations can have a negative consequence on calcium signaling, cell membrane biology, or cytoskeletal dynamics, which ultimately cause different diseases depending on the cell type affected (i.e. muscle myofibers or retinal neurons).

Previous work is highlighted below and a complete list of publications and abstracts can be found on Google Scholar.

Cone opsin labeled in a flatmount mouse retina

Cone photoreceptors labeled with different opsins in a flatmount mouse retina

TEM cross section of photoreceptors throught the connecting cilium and inner segment

TEM cross section of photoreceptors through the connecting cilium and inner segment

Mouse photoreceptors labeled via transgenic expression of NRL-GFP

TEM image showing ribbon synapses in rod spherules

Mouse retinal cross section labeled with tubulin, VGLUT1, and DAPI

Mouse bipolar cells labeled via transgenic expression of Grm6-TdTomato

Rod spherules imaged using expansion microscopy

TEM section of photoreceptors showing the inner and outer segments separate by the connecting cilium

TEM section of photoreceptors showing the inner and outer segments separated by the connecting cilium

Keystone Symposia on Molecular & Cellular Biology: Targeting Dry Age-related Macular Degeneration 2024

Poster Presentation & Short Talk: "Suprachoroidal Delivery of a Novel Capsid Expressing a C5 Inhibitor as a Potential Treatment for Dry Age-Related Macular Degeneration"

Peer-Reviewed Publications

Campla C, Bocchero U, Strickland R, Nellissery J, Advani J, Ignatova I, Srivastava D, Aponte A, Wang Y, Gumerson J, Martemyanov K, Artemyev N, Pahlberg J, Swaroop A. Frmpd1 Facilitates Trafficking of G-Protein Transducin and Modulates Synaptic Function in Rod Photoreceptors. eNeuro. 2022 Oct 17; 9(5) PMID: 36180221
Smith A, Advani A, Brock D, Nellissery J, Gumerson J, Dong L, Aravind L, Kennedy B, Swaroop A. GATD3A, a mitochondrial deglycase with evolutionary origins from gammaproteobacteria, restricts the formation of advanced glycation end products. BMC Biology. 2022 Mar 21; 20(1):68 PMID: 35307029
Jiang K, Mondal AK, Adlakha YK, Gumerson J, Aponte A, Gieser L, Kim JW, Boleda A, Brooks MJ, Nellissery J, Fox D, Balaban R, Covian R, Swaroop A. Multi-omics analyses reveal early metabolic imbalance and mitochondrial stress in neonatal photoreceptors leading to cell death in PDE6brd1/rd1 mouse model of retinal degeneration. Human Molecular Genetics, 2022 Jan 24 PMID: 35075486
Gumerson JD, Alsufyani A, Yu W, Lei J, Sun X, Dong L, Wu Z, Li T. Restoration of RPGR expression in vivo using CRISPR/Cas9 gene editing. Gene Therapy. 14 July 2021 PMID: 34257417
Hargrove-Grimes P, Mondal AK*, Gumerson JD*, Nellissery J, Aponte AM, Gieser L, Qian H, Fariss RN, Bonifacino JS, Li T, Swaroop S. Loss of endocytosis-associated RabGEF1 causes aberrant morphogenesis and altered autophagy in photoreceptors leading to retinal degeneration. PLoS Genetics. Dec 23; 16(12) 2020 PMID: 33362196
*Equal Contribution
Collier AF*, Gumerson J*, Lehtimaki K, Puolivali J, Jones JW, Kane MA, Manne S, O’Neill A, Windish HP, Ahtoniemi T, Williams BA, Albrecht DE, Bloch RJ. Effect of Ibuprofen on Skeletal Muscle of Dysferlin-Null Mice. Journal of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics. Mar;364(3):409-419, 2018 PMID: 29284661
Campla CK, Breit H, Dong L, Gumerson JD, Roger JE, Swaroop A. Pias3 is necessary for dorso-ventral patterning and visual response of retinal cones but is not required for rod photoreceptor differentiation. Biology Open. 5, 1010-1010, 7, 2017 PMID: 28495965
May-Simera H, Gumerson JD, Gao C, Campos M, Cologna SM, Beyer T, Boldt J, Kaya KD, Patel N, Kretschmer F, Kelley MW, Petralia RS, Davey MG, Li T. Loss of MACF1 Abolishes Ciliogenesis and Disrupts Apicobasal Polarity Establishment in the Retina. Cell Reports, 17, 1399-1413, 5, 2016 PMID: 27783952
Sun X*, Park J*, Gumerson J, Wu Z, Swaroop A, Qian H, Roll-Mecak A, Li T. Loss of RPGR glutamylation underlies the pathogenic mechanism of retinal dystrophy caused by TTLL5 mutations. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 113, E2925-E2934, 21, 2016 PMID: 27162334

For a complete list of publications and abstracts, please see Google Scholar.

Research

Recent Presentations

Peer-Reviewed Publications