Shore Laboratory

Salin Chakkalakal, Ph.D.

Senior Research Investigator
University of Pennsylvania

Hometown

Bengaluru, India

Education

  • Post-Doctoral Fellow, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA.
  • Ph.D. (Physiological chemistry and Genetics) University of Cologne, Cologne, Germany.
  • M.Tech (Biotechnology)  Anna University, Chennai, India .
  • B.Pharm (Pharmaceutical Sciences) Bangalore University, Bangalore, India.

Areas of Special Interest

Preclinical drug discovery/development targeting rare diseases. Development of transgenic and knock-in mouse models for complex human genetic disorders.To understand pathways, progression, and mechanism of pathogenesis of human genetic disease using novel mouse models.Endochondral skeletal formation. cartilage biology, skeletal dysplasias.Development and screening for new therapeutic molecules for skeletal dysplasias.

Publications

  • Culbert, A.L., S.A. Chakkalakal, E. Theosmy, T.A. Brennan, F.S. Kaplan, and E.M. Shore (2014). Alk2 regulates early chondrogenic fate in FOP heterotopic endochondral ossification. Stem Cells 32, 1289-1300.
  • Chakkalakal, S.A., K. Uchibe, M. Convente, D. Zhang, A. Economides, F.S. Kaplan, M. Pacifici, M. Iwamoto, E.M. Shore (2016). Palovarotene inhibits heterotopic ossification and maintains limb mobility and growth in mice with the human ACVR1R206H FOP mutation. J. Bone Min. Res. 31, 1666-1675.
  • Convente, M.R., S.A. Chakkalakal, E. Yang, R.J. Caron, D. Zhang, T. Kambayashi, F.S. Kaplan, and E.M. Shore (2018). Depletion of mast cells and macrophages impairs heterotopic ossification in an Acvr1R206H mouse model of fibrodysplasia ossificans progressiva. J. Bone Min. Res., 33, 269-282. Issue cover image.
  • Kaplan, F.S., S.A. Chakkalakal, and E.M. Shore (2012). Fibrodysplasia ossificans progressiva: mechanisms and models of skeletal metamorphosis. Disease Models and Mechanisms 5(6), 756-762.
  • Culbert, A.L., S.A. Chakkalakal, M.R. Convente, V.Y. Lounev, F.S. Kaplan, and E.M. Shore (2013). Fibrodysplasia (Myositis) Ossificans Progressiva, Chapter 24; pp. 375-393. Genetics of Bone Biology and Skeletal Disease. R.V. Thakker, M.P. Whyte, J.A. Eisman, and T. Igarashi, Editors. Elsevier, New York.
  • Chakkalakal, S.A. and E.M. Shore (2019). Heterotopic ossification in mouse models of heterotopic ossification. In: Methods Molec Biology: Bone Morphogenetic Proteins Methods and Protocols. Melissa B. Rogers, Editor. Human Press, Springer, NY, NY. Chapter 18, p 247-256.

Book Chapter

  • Culbert AL, Chakkalakal SA, Convente MC, Lounev VY, Kaplan FS, Shore EM. 2013, Genetics of Bone Biology and Skeletal Disease, Chapter 24: Fibrodysplasia (myositis) ossificans progressiva, Elsevier, San Diego, CA.

Conference presentations

Oral Presentations
  • The ACVR1 R206H mutation recapitulates the clinical phenotype of FOP in a Knock-in mouse model; American Society for Bone Mineral Research Annual Meeting, October 2010, Toronto, Ontario.
  • Acvr1 knock-in mouse models for Fibrodysplasia Ossificans Progressiv (FOP); American Society for Bone Mineral Research 30th Annual Meeting, September 12-16, 2008, Montréal, Québec, Canada.
  • Point mutations in collagen type II causing dysplasia; the First Joint Meeting of the French and German Connective Tissue Societies. March 2005, Cologne, Germany.
Posters Presented
  • The FOP R206H Acvr1 mutation is sufficient to cause heterotopic ossification in mouse limbs and is inhibited by a selective RAR agonist treatment. American Society for Bone Mineral Research Annual Meeting, September 2014, Houston, Texas.
  • The ALK2 R206H (FOP) mutation causes lower limb chondrodysplasia in mice; American Society for Bone Mineral Research Annual Meeting, September 2011, San Diego, California, USA.
  • Point mutations in collagen type II causing dysplasias; First Joint Meeting of the French and German Connective Tissue Societies. March 2005, Cologne, Germany.
  • Elucidating biochemical effects of chondrodysplasia related point mutations in collagen type II; XIX Meeting of the Federation of European Connective Tissue Societies (FECTS 2004). July 2004, Taormina, Italy.
  • Participated in 27th annual conference of the Indian Immunology Society and symposium on immunology of infectious diseases held at central JALMA Institute for Leprosy. December 2000, Agra, India.

Awards

  • Young investigator Travel Grant Award. ASBMR 2010
  • Graduate fellowship in International graduate school for genetics and functional genomics (IGSGFG) to pursue Doctoral thesis. University of Cologne, Germany.
  • Junior research fellowship for two years: Radiation damage and intestinal stem cells, Radioprotectors development. Defense Research and Development Organization (DRDO). INMAS, Govt of India, India.
  • M.Tech Biotechnology scholarship, Department of Biotechnology, India
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