Piers Nash

Piers David Nash, Ph.D.,(born August 8 1969) is a scientist who investigates protein-protein interactions involved in signal transduction, and the molecular mechanisms by which cells respond to external cues. He is the son of Roger Nash and Chris Nash (Bronwen Christine Harrhy).

He is an Assistant Professor in The Ben May Department for Cancer Research and a Scientist of the Cancer Research Center at The University of Chicago which he joined in 2004. His work focuses on understanding the SH2 domain at a systems level and investigating the role of ubiquitination in controlling endocytosis and modulating signal transduction.

Born in Exeter, England, he received a B.Sc. in Biochemistry from the University of Guelph. He received a Ph.D in 1999 from the University of Alberta working in the laboratory of Dr. Grant McFadden investingating poxviral immunomodulatory proteins. His doctoral thesis focused on the enzymology and biological properties of the Myxoma virus encoded serine proteinase inhibitor (serpin), SERP-1. He completed postdoctoral research with Dr. Tony Pawson at the Samuel Lunenfeld Research Institute of Mount Sinai Hospital and the University of Toronto from June 1999 to December 2003.

Research Papers
This article was the focus of the following reviews and comments: Ferrell, J. E. Jr. (2001) Six steps to destruction Nature 414: 498-499.  Deshaies, R.J. and Ferrell, J. E. Jr. (2002) Multisite Phosphorylation and the Countdown to S Phase. Cell 107: 819-822.  Harper, J. W. (2002) A phosphorylation-driven ubiquitination switch for cell-cycle control. Trends in Cell Biology 12(3): 104-107. Tromans, A. (2001) Highlights of the Week: Switching on S-Phase. Nature Reviews Molecular Cell Biology 2:873. Adler, E.M. Gough, N.R., Ray, L.B. (2004) 2003:Signaling Breakthroughs of the Year. Sci. STKE 2004: 214, eg1.
 * Nash, P. (1984). "Differential Effects of Wind Speed on Low Temperature Evaporation", Chinook 6: 92-93.
 * Nash, C. H., and Nash, P. (1986). "Correlates of Colour Memory: A Neglected Field of Research", Future Health 8: 15-16.
 * Nash, P., and Davison, L. (1989). "What gifted secondary school students tell about their school programs", Canadian Journal of Education. 14: 109-118.
 * Maksymowych, W. P., Nation, N., Nash, P., Macen, J., McFadden, G., Lucas, A., and Russell, A. S. (1996). Amelioration of established antigen-induced arthritis in rabbits treated with a secreted viral serine proteinase inhibitor. Journal of Rheumatology 23 (5): 878-882.
 * Lucas, A., Liu, L., Macen, J. L., Nash, P., Dai, E., Stewart, M., Yan, W., Graham, K., Etches, W., Boshkov, L., Nation, P. N., Humen, D., Hobman, M., and McFadden, G. (1996). A virus-encoded serine proteinase inhibitor, SERP-1, inhibits atherosclerotic plaque development following balloon angioplasty. Circulation, 94 (11): 2890-2900.
 * Nash, P., Whitty, A., Handwerker, J., Macen, J., and McFadden, G. (1998) Inhibitory specificity of the anti-inflammatory myxoma virus serpin, SERP-1. Journal of Biological Chemistry 273 (33): 20982-20991.
 * Christov, A., Dai, E., Liu, L., Miller, L.W., Nash, P., Lalani, A., McFadden, G., Nation, P.N., Tulip, J., and Lucas, A. (1999). Detection of transplant vasculopathy in a rat aortic allograft model by fluorescence spectroscopic optical analysis. Lasers in Surgery and Medicine 24: 346-359.
 * Miller, L., Dai, E., Nash, P., Liu, L., Icton, C., Klironomous, D., Fan, L., Nation, P. N., Zhong, R., McFadden, G., Lucas, A. (2000) Inhibition of transplant vasculopathy in a rat aortic model after infusion of an anti-inflammatory viral serpin. Circulation 101: 1598-1605.
 * Lucas, A., Dai, E., Liu, L., Guan, H., Nash, P., Mcfadden, G., Miller, L. (2000) Transplant vasculopathy: viral anti-inflammatory serpin regulation of atherogenesis. The Journal of Heart and Lung Transplantation 19: 1029-1038.
 * Nash, P., Barry, M., Seet, B., Jahns, K., Hota, S., Heger, J., Hodgkinson, C., Graham, K., Jackson, R., McFadden, G. (2000) Post-translational modification of the myxoma virus anti-inflammatory serpin, SERP-1. Biochemical Journal 347: 375-382.
 * Christov, A., Dai, E., Drangova, M., Liu, L., Abela, G.S., Nash, P., McFadden, G. and Lucas, A. (2000) Optical Detection of Triggered Atherosclerotic Plaque Disruption by Fluorescence Emission Analysis. Photochemistry and Photobiology, 72 (2): 242–252
 * Nash, P., McFadden, G. and Whitty, A. (2000) The application of linear free energy relationships to SERPIN mechanism. FEBS Letters 475: 1-6.
 * Nash, P., Tang, X., Orlicky, S., Chen, Q., Gertler, F.B., Mendenhall, M.D., Sicheri, F., Pawson, T., Tyers, M. (2001) Multi-site phosphorylation of a CDK inhibitor sets a threshold for the onset of DNA replication. Nature 414: 514-521.
 * Nash, P., Berry, D., Liu, S., Pawon, T., McGlade, J. (2002). A high affinity Arg-X-X-Lys SH3-binding motif confers specificity for the interaction between Gads and SLP-76 in T-cell signaling. Current Biology 12: 1336-1341.
 * Tong, J., Elowe, S., Nash, P., Pawson, T. (2003) Manipulation of EphB2 regulatory motifs and SH2 binding sites switches MAP kinase signaling and biological activity. Journal of Biological Chemistry 278: 6111-6119.
 * Bladt, F., Aippersbach, E., Gelkop, S., Strasser, G. A., Nash, P., Tafuri, A., Gertler, F., Pawson, T. (2003) The murine Nck SH2/SH3 adaptors regulate mesoderm-derived embryonic structures in vivo and the cellular actin network. Molecular and Cellular Biology 23 (13): 4586-4597.
 * Liu, Q., Nash, P., Berry, D., Pawson, T., McGlade, J., Li, S. (2003) Structural Basis for Specific Binding of the Gads SH3 domain to an RXXK Motif-containing Slp-76 Peptide: A Novel Mode of Peptide Recognition. Molecular Cell 11: 471-481.
 * Leong, H., Sloan, J.R., Nash, P.D. and Greene, G.L. (2005) Recruitment of histone deacetylase 4 to the N-terminal region of estrogen receptor alpha. Molecular Endocrinology 19(12): 2930-42.
 * Dai E, Viswanathan K, Sun YM, Li X, Liu L, Togonu-Bickersteth B, Richardson J, Macaulay C, Nash P, Turner P, Nazarian SH, Moyer R, McFadden G, Lucas AR. (2006) Identification of myxomaviral serpin reactive site loop sequences that regulate innate immune responses. Journal of Biological Chemistry 281(12):8041-50.
 * Liu, B.A., Jablonowski, K., Raina, M., Arcé, M., Pawson, T., and Nash, P.D. (2006) The Human and Mouse Complement of SH2 Domain Proteins – establishing the boundaries of phosphotyrosine signaling. Molecular Cell 22: 851-868.

Book Chapters

 * Nash, P., Lucas, A., and McFadden, G. SERP-1, A Poxvirus-Encoded Serpin, Is Expressed as a Secreted Glycoprotein that Inhibits the Inflammatory Response to Myxoma Virus Infection. "The SERPINS", Plenum Press, New York.  Chapter 19: 195-205 (1997).
 * Lalani, A., Nash, P., Seet, B., Robichaud, J. and McFadden, G. (1999) Interaction of DNA virus proteins with host cytokines. In DNA Viruses: A Practical Approach. Chapter 7, pages 177-208 Ed. A. Cann. Practical Approach Series. Oxford University Press.
 * Zalai, C. V., Nash, P., Dai, E., Liu, L., Lucas, A. The Potential Role of Serine Proteinase Inhibitors for the Prevention of Plaque Rupture. Cardiovascular Plaque Rupture. DL Brown (editor), Marcel Dekker, Inc., New York, NY 1999.
 * Pawson, T., and Nash, P. (2003) Modular protein interaction domains in cellular communication. Handbook of Cell Signaling. Volume 1. Chapter 67, pages 379-385.
 * Pawson, T., Gish, G.D., and Nash, P. (2004) The SH2 domain: a prototype for protein interaction domains. In “Modular Protein Domains” ed. Cesareni, G. et al. Chapter 1, pages 5-36, Wiley VCH Press.

Review Articles
This was the focus of the following review: Gough, N.R., Adler, E.A., & Ray, L. B., Cellular Regulation through Protein Interaction Domains. An Editorial Guide appearing in Science magazine’s Signal Transduction Knowledge Environment (STKE) Vol. 2003, Issue 179, 22 April 2003.
 * Nash, P. D., Opas, M., and Michalak, M. (1994) Calreticulin: not just another calcium binding protein. Molecular and Cellular Biochemistry 135: 71-78.
 * McFadden, G., Graham, K., Ellison, K., Barry, M., Macen, J., Schreiber, M., Mossman, K., Nash, P., Lalani, A., and Everett, H. (1995). Interruption of cytokine networks by poxviruses: lessons from myxoma virus. Journal of Leukocyte Biology 57: 731-738.
 * McFadden, G., Lalani, A., Everett, H., Nash, P., and Xu, X. (1998) Virus-encoded receptors for cytokines and chemokines. Seminars in Cell and Developmental Biology 9: 359-368.
 * Nash, P., Barrett, J., Cao, J., Hota-Mitchell, S., Lalani, A., Everett, H., Xu, X., Robichaud, J., Hnatiuk, S., Ainslie, C., Seet, B., and McFadden, G. (1999) Poxvirus immunomodulatory proteins are a window to the immune system: the myxoma virus story. Immunological Reviews 168: 103-120.
 * Xu, X., Nash, P., McFadden, G. (2000) Myxoma virus expresses a TNF receptor homolog with two distinct functions. Virus Genes 21 (1/2): 97-104.
 * Pawson, T. and Nash, P. (2000) Protein-protein interactions define specificity in signal transduction. Genes & Development 14 (9): 1027–1047.
 * Pawson, T., Gish, G., Nash, P. (2001). SH2 domains, interaction modules and cellular wiring. Trends in Cell Biology 11(12): 504-511.
 * Pawson, T., Raina, M., Nash, P. (2002). Interaction domains: From simple binding events to complex cellular behaviour. FEBS Letters 513: 2-10.
 * Pawson, T. & Nash, P. (2003) Assembly of cell regulatory systems through protein interaction domains. Science 300: 445-452.

Honors & Awards
1992-1994	NSERC Graduate Fellowship

1992-1994	University of Alberta Walter Johns Award

1992-1997	AHFMR Graduate Fellowship

1996-1997	University of Alberta Walter Johns Award

1997-1998	University of Alberta Dissertation Scholarship

1999	               NSERC Postdoctoral Fellowship (declined)

1999-2002	MRC/CIHR Postdoctoral Fellowship Award

2002	               NCIC Postdoctoral Fellowship (declined)

2002-2004	CIHR Senior Research Fellowship

2005	               Cancer Research Foundation Young Investigator Award

2005-2006	Leukemia Research Foundation New Investigator Award

2006-2008     Jimmy V Foundation Scholar