Melissa Lucero, PhD, BS

Publications

• Lucero MJ, Setua S, Thangaraju K, Khan A, Lamb DR, Lisk C, Swindle D, Cendali FI, Dzieciatkowska M, Stephenson D, Pak DI, Tolson R, Zaeske S, Rana NK, Khan S, Westover N, Davizon-Castillo P, George G, Hassell K, Nuss R, D'Alessandro A, Manolova V, Irwin DC, Buehler PW. Ferroportin inhibition attenuates pulmonary hypertension in hypoxic sickle cell disease mice. Blood Adv. 2026 May 12;10(9):3229-3242. doi: 10.1182/bloodadvances.2025018680. PubMed PMID: 41538305; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC13158747.
• Cendali FI, Lisk C, Argabright A, Dzieciatkowska M, Rana NK, Swindle D, Stephenson D, McAfee J, Westover N, Lucero M, Gandjeva A, Stenmark K, Tuder R, Graham BB, Lahm T, Karoor V, George G, Hassel K, Nuss R, Davizon-Castillio P, Buehler PW, D'Alessandro A, Irwin DC. Iron, arginine, and redox metabolism in peripheral blood mononuclear cells distinguishes sickle cell disease and pulmonary hypertension. Hemasphere. 2026 Mar 7;10(3):e70318. doi: 10.1002/hem3.70318. PMID: 41799249; PMCID: PMC12966932.
• Lucero MJ, Lisk C, Swindle D, Cendali F, Setua S, Thangaraju K, Khan A, Pak DI, O'Boyle Q, Lu S, Tolson R, Zaeske S, Khan S, Rana N, Westover N, Davizon-Castillio P, George G, Hassell K, Nuss R, Brinkman N, Gentinetta T, Niemeyer C, Cabrales P, Palmer A, D'Alessandro A, Buehler PW, Irwin DC. Combined haptoglobin and hemopexin therapy for the treatment of cardiopulmonary dysfunction in sickle cell disease. Biomed Pharmacother. 2025 Nov;192:118595. doi: 10.1016/j.biopha.2025.118595. Epub 2025 Sep 24. PubMed PMID: 40997624.
• Rana NK, Lisk C, Cendali F, Lucero MJ, Grier A, Setua S, Thangaraju K, Khan A, Reisz JA, Dzieciatkowska M, Pak DI, Swindle D, Danaher MX, Khan S, Westover N, Carter M, Hassell K, Nuss R, George G, Buehler PW, D'Alessandro A, Irwin DC. Metabolic and Proteomic Divergence is Present in Spleens and Livers from Berkeley Sickle Cell Anemia and ß-Thalassemia Mice. J Proteome Res. 2025 Mar 7;24(3):1306-1316. doi: 10.1021/acs.jproteome.4c00814. Epub 2025 Feb 13. PubMed PMID: 39947632; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC11895773.
• Lucero MJ, Lisk C, Cendali F, Swindle D, Setua S, Thangaraju K, Pak DI, O'Boyle Q, Lu S, Tolson R, Zaeske S, Rana N, Khan S, Westover N, DavizonCastillo P, George G, Hassell K, Nuss R, Brinkman N, Gentinetta T, Palmer AF, D'Alessandro A, Buehler PW, Irwin DC. Targeting lung heme iron by aerosol hemopexin adminstration in sickle cell disease pulmonary hypertension. Free Radic Biol Med. 2025 Mar 1;229:458-473. doi: 10.1016/j.freeradbiomed.2025.01.045. Epub 2025 Jan 23. PubMed PMID: 39862998; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC11846696.
• Kheyfets VO, Kumar S, Heerdt PM, Ichimura K, Brown RD, Lucero M, Essafri I, Williams S, Stenmark KR, Spiekerkoetter E. Characterizing the Spatiotemporal Transcriptomic Response of the Right Ventricle to Acute Pressure Overload. Int J Mol Sci. 2023 Jun 5;24(11). doi: 10.3390/ijms24119746. PubMed PMID: 37298696; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC10253685.
• El-Mellouhi F, Brothers EN, Lucero MJ, Scuseria GE. Role of screened exact exchange in accurately describing properties of transition metal oxides: Modeling defects in LaAlO3. Phys. Rev. B. 2013; 88:214102.
• El-Mellouhi F, Brothers EN, Lucero MJ, Bulik IW, Scuseria GE. Structural Phase Transitions of the Metal Oxide Perovskites SrTiO3, LaAlO3 and LaTiO3 Studied with a Screened Hybrid Functional. Phys. Rev. B. 2013; 87:035107.
• El-Mellouhi F, Brothers EN, Lucero MJ, Scuseria GE. Neutral defects in SrTiO3 studied with screened hybrid density functional theory. J Phys Condens Matter. 2013 Apr 3;25(13):135501. doi: 10.1088/0953-8984/25/13/135501. Epub 2013 Mar 1. PubMed PMID: 23454809.
• Lucero MJ, Henderson TM, Scuseria GE. Improved semiconductor lattice parameters and band gaps from a middle-range screened hybrid exchange functional. J Phys Condens Matter. 2012 Apr 11;24(14):145504. doi: 10.1088/0953-8984/24/14/145504. Epub 2012 Mar 15. PubMed PMID: 22417942.
• Ellis JK, Lucero MJ, Scuseria GE. The Indirect to Direct Band Gap Transition in Multilayered MoS2 as Predicted by a Screened Hybrid Density Functional. Appl. Phys. Lett.. 2011; 99:261908.
• El-Mellouhi F, Brothers EN, Lucero MJ. Modeling of the Cubic and Antiferrodistortive Phases of SrTiO3 with Screened Hybrid Density Functional Theory. Phys. Rev. B. 2011; 84:115122.
• Dedecek J, Lucero MJ, Li C, Gao F, Klein P, Urbanova M, Tvaruzkova Z, Sazama P, Sklenak S. Complex Analysis of Aluminum Siting in the Framework of Silicon-Rich Zeolites. A Case Study on Ferrierites. J. Phys. Chem. C. 2011; 115:11056.
• Lucero MJ, Aguilera I, Diaconu CV, Palacios P, Wahnon P, Scuseria GE. Screened Hybrid and Self-Consistent GW Calculations of Cadmium/ Magnesium Indium Sulfide Materials. Phys. Rev. B. 2011; 83:205128.
• Lucero MJ, Niklasson AM, Tretiak S, Challacombe M. Molecular-orbital-free algorithm for excited states in time-dependent perturbation theory. J Chem Phys. 2008 Aug 14;129(6):064114. doi: 10.1063/1.2965535. PubMed PMID: 18715058.
• Christianson LA, Lucero MJ, Appella DH, Klein DA, Gellman SH. Improved Treatment of Cyclic ß-Amino Acids and Successful Prediction of ß-Peptide Secondary Structure Using a Modified Force Field: Amber*C. J. Comp. Chem.. 2000; 21:763.
• Silvero G, Lucero MJ, Winterfeldt E, Houk KN. Theoretical Study of the Facial Selectivity in Diels-Alder Reactions of 4,4-Disubstituted Cyclohexadienones. Tetrahedron. 1998; 54:7293.
• Winkler JD, Axten J, Hammach AH, Kwak YS, Lengweiler U, Lucero MJ, Houk KN. Stereoselective Synthesis of the Tetracyclic Core of Manzamine Via the Vinylogous Amide Photocycloaddition Cascade. Tetrahedron. 1998; 54:7045.
• Lucero MJ, Houk KN. Torsional Control of Epoxidation Stereoselectivity in 1,2-Dihydronaphthalenes. Transition State Modeling with Semiempirical Quantum Mechanics. J Org Chem. 1998 Oct 2;63(20):6973-6977. doi: 10.1021/jo980760g. PubMed PMID: 11672319.
• Lucero MJ, Houk KN. Conformational Transmission of Chirality: The Origin of 1,4-Asymmetric Induction in Michael Reactions of Chiral Imines. J. Am. Chem. Soc.. 1997; 119:826.
• Lucero MJ, Houk KN. High Precision Simultaneous Determination of Multiple Small Kinetic Isotope Effects at Natural Abundance. Chemtracts-Org Chem. 1996; 9:72.
• Singleton DA, Church KM, Lucero MJ. Catalytic Stereocontrol of a Radical Cyclization. Tetrahedron Lett.. 1990; 31:5551.