Conte Anadromous Fish Research Center Physiology Section Arne K. Christensen 1 Migratory Way-P.O. Box 796 Turners Falls, MA 01376 voice: 413-863-3835 fax: 413-863-9810

Research Physiologist Postdoctoral Fellow - University of Massachusetts, Amherst Education Ph.D., Program in Molecular and Cellular Biology, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, 2008 B.S., Biology University of Massachusetts, Amherst, 2000 Research Interests Anadromous fish spend most of their adult lives in the ocean, but spawn, hatch and mature in the relative security of fresh water streams. Thus, these organisms can cope with, and indeed thrive in, a broad range of salinities that lie outside normal internal concentrations. In order to maintain body fluid homeostasis, organisms in fresh water must actively import ions to compensate for the passive diffusion of ions into their surroundings. Conversely, in the marine environment, organisms must actively excrete excess ions by transporting them against their electrochemical gradient. Broadly, I am interested in molecular and biochemical mechanisms that facilitate internal ionic homeostasis in anadromous fish preparing for, or presented with, changes in salinity. Specifically, I am focused on the regulation and functional relevance of three ion transporters in the gill; the Na2+/K+ ATPase (NKA), Na2+/K+/2Cl- cotransporter (NKCC), and the Cystic Fibrosis Transmembrane conductance Receptor (CFTR). Additionally, I am interested in the broad transcriptional and proteomic changes that osmoregulatory tissues undergo in response to changes in salinity, and how these changes relate to growth. Publications Christensen AK and Jensen AM. Tissue-specific requirements for specific domains within Epb4.1l5 isoforms during early zebrafish development. BMC Developmental Biology 2008 8:3 Hsu YC, Willoughby JJ, Christensen AK, Jensen AM. Mosaic Eyes is a novel component of the Crumbs complex and negatively regulates photoreceptor apical size. Development 2006 133(24):4849-59. Newmyer SL, Christensen A, Sever S. Auxilin-dynamin interactions link the uncoating ATPase chaperone machinery with vesicle formation. Developmental Cell 2003 4(6):929-40.