Stanko S. Stojilkovic, Ph.D.

Signaling and Secretion in Neuroendocrine Cells

The Section was formed in 1993 to investigate cell signaling cascades, gene expression and secretion in hypothalamic and pituitary cells, with special emphasis on interactions between electrical events at the plasma membrane and receptor-controlled pathways. Specifically, we address how these neuroendocrine cells use ion channels and G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs) as signaling platforms for efficient information processing. For this purpose, we characterize both native and recombinant receptors and channels that have been cloned from neuroendocrine cells. In the past, our work focused on the role of inositol-trisphosphate receptors in oscillatory calcium release of pituitary cells, the mechanism of periodic activation of these channels, and the complex way of synchronizing calcium release from intracellular stores and the electrical activity of cells. We also characterized the voltage-gated channels expressed in neuroendocrine cells, the cell-type-specific patterns of electrical activity and the channels involved, the physiological relevance of such activity, and the crosstalk between GPCRs and ion channels. More recently, we have characterized ligand-gated receptor channels expressed in pituitary cells, including ATP-gated P2X receptor channels. Our current work is focused on age-, sex-, and tissue structure-specific pituitary signaling, transcription and secretion, the heterogeneity of pituitary secretory cells reflecting their postnatal genesis, and cell type-specific exocytic pathways. Ongoing and proposed projects include the use of transgenic and conditional knockout mouse models. The results already obtained by these projects and the results of other researches have revealed the enormous complexity and physiological relevance of the intracellular signaling system in the pituitary gland and the need for additional investigations. The information we are currently obtaining and the research planned should continue to be useful to investigators and clinicians in the neuroendocrine field, as well as the wider scientific community.

Dr. Stanko Stojilkovic received a Ph.D. in Physiology and Neuroendocrinology from the University of Novi Sad, Serbia, in 1982. He was Assistant Professor of Physiology at the Faculty of Sciences, University of Novi Sad, before joining NICHD as a Guest Researcher in 1985, where he worked in the laboratory of Dr. Kevin J. Catt. Dr. Stojilkovic became an Investigator in 1993, leading the Section on Cellular Signaling, and then Senior Investigator in 1998, both within the Endocrinology and Reproduction Research Branch of NICHD. His work has earned the group recognition, which is reflected in 280 publications, including several review articles and chapters in university textbooks, and approximately 100 seminar and conference invitations. Dr. Stojilkovic is member of the Endocrine Society, American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, American Neuroendocrine Society, and Society for Neuroscience. He has also been inducted into the Serbian Academy of Sciences and Arts (2003) and has received a Doctor Honoris Causa (2010) from the University of Novi Sad. He is/was on Editorial Boards of eight journals, including Endocrinology, Molecular Endocrinology, and the Journal of Biological Chemistry.