Michal Toborek, M.D., Ph.D.
Professor, Department of Surgery
593 Wethington Bldg.
900 S. Limestone
Lexington, KY 40536-0200
Tel: (859)-323-4094
Fax: (859)-323-1093
e-mail: mjtobo00@uky.edu
Academic Appointments:
• Department of Surgery
• Department of Molecular & Cellular Biochemistry
• Graduate Center for Nutritional Sciences
• Department of Nutrition and Food Sciences
• Markey Cancer Center
Education:
• Medical School, Silesian School of Medicine, Katowice, Poland, 1979-1985.
• M.D., Silesian School of Medicine, Katowice, Poland, 1985
• Ph.D., Silesian School of Medicine, Katowice, Poland, Dissertation title: Pathomechanisms of experimental atherosclerosis induced by
methionine-enriched or lipid-enriched diets, 1989
Awards:
• Silesian School of Medicine Rector’s Awards for Outstanding Scientific Achievements.
• Silesian School of Medicine Rector’s Awards for Outstanding Teachers.
• Dissertation Year Fellowship, Silesian School of Medicine.
• American Heart Association; Excellence in Research Award.
• American College of Nutrition; Anafred N. Halpern New Investigator Award.
• Alexander von Humboldt Foundation; Alexander von Humboldt Research Award.
• Honorable Order of Kentucky Colonels 2004, 2005 and 2006.
• Wethington Awards, University of Kentucky.
Specific Interest in nutrition:
Dr. Toborek's research is focused on the protective effects of nutrients in the disruption of the blood-brain barrier and other CNS diseases.
Research:
Research in Dr.Toborek's laboratory has been focused on several aspects of vascular biology. Specific interest involves studies on the effects of nutrients on the induction of oxidative stress, antioxidant protection, activation of redox-regulated transcription factors and transcriptional regulation of inflammatory genes. Several recent projects in Dr.Toborek's laboratory have also been dedicated to study of the effects of HIV Tat protein on metabolism of brain endothelial cells in relationship to the breakdown of the blood-brain barrier and the development of HIV-associated dementia. Tat is a nuclear regulatory protein which plays a critical role in HIV-1 replication. Research in Dr.Toborek's laboratory focused on the prooxidative effects of this protein and protective effects of anti-oxidants against Tat-induced endothelial cell dysfunction.
