Yuksel Agca
Associate Professor
DVM, MS, PhD

Building Address: S122 Discovery Drive
Phone Number: 884 0311
Email: agcay@missouri.edu

Research Emphasis: Our main research interest is gamete, embryo and gonad cryopreservation, physiology and development. Our research includes cellular, biophysical, and molecular aspects of cryobiology and biology of mammalian germplasm, particularly scientifically valuable animals. The main goal of our laboratory is to perform basic research and subsequently  and translate the gained knowledge toward development of reproductive technologies as they relate to gamete, embryo, and gonadal tissue biotechnologies including genome cryobanking, human diseases model development, and gene transfer. We are also interested in genome resource cryobanking of scientifically important, mutant, transgenic, and knockout animal models for human diseases.  One of the research interests that we are currently pursuing is the use of laboratory rats as models to develop reproductive therapy strategies for women via ovarian tissue cryopreservation and subsequent auto-transplantation for the prevention of infertility and bone loss. In addition, our ongoing research effort is to investigate menopause associated cognitive, brain molecular, cellular and pathologic changes by using ovariectomized Alzheimer’s disease model transgenic rats that we developed in our laboratory.

Selected Publications since 2008 (Google Scholar Citations):

1. Oh S-H, Levit A, Agca C, Allman B, Garabon J, Agca Y, Regis A, Hachinski V, Rajakumar N, Desai S. Whitehead S (2017).  Behavioural inflexibility in a comorbid rat model of striatal ischemic injury and mutant hAPP overexpression. Behavioural Brain Research. DOI: 10.1016/j.bbr.
2. Ellegaard M, Agca C, Petersen S,  Agrawal A, Kruse  LS, Wang N,  Gartland A, Jensen JB, Jørgensen NR, Agca Y (2017). Bone turnover is altered in transgenic rats overexpressing the P2Y2 purinergic receptor. Purinergic Signaling. DOI 10.1007/s11302-017-9582-3.
3. Agca Y, Qian S, Agca C, Seye C (2016). Direct evidence for P2Y2 receptor involvement in vascular response to injury arteriosclerosis. J. Vascular Research 53:163-171.
4. Agca C, Klakotskaia D, Schachtman TR, Chan AW, Lah JJ, Agca Y (2016). PS-1 transgene addition to APP overexpressing transgenic rats increases Aβ levels and results in loss of memory retention. BMC-Neuroscience DOI: 10.1186/s12868-016-0281-8.
5. Moran SP, Chi T, Prucha MS, Agca Y, Chan AWS (2016). Cryotolerance of transgenic rhesus macaque sperm. J. American Association for Laboratory Animal Sci 55:520-524.
6. Kim S, Hooper S, Agca C, Agca Y (2016). Post-thaw ATP supplementation enhances cryoprotective effect of iodixanol in rat spermatozoa. Reproductive Biology & Endocrinology. DOI: 10.1186/s12958-016-0141-5.
7. Silverberg GD,  Miller MC, Pascale CL, Caralopoulos LN, Agca Y, Agca C, Klinge PM,  Stopa EG (2015). Kaolin-induced chronic hydrocephalus accelerates amyloid deposition and vascular disease in transgenic rats expressing high levels of human APP. Fluids and Barriers of the CNS DOI:10.1186/2045-8118-12-2.
8. Uguz C, Varisli O, Agca C, Evans T. Agca Y (2015).  In vitro effects of nonylphenol on motility, mitochondrial, acrosomal and chromatin integrity of ram and boar spermatozoa. Andrologia DOI: 10.1111/and.12346.
9. Agca C and Agca Y (2014). Molecular and ultrastuctural changes of rat pre-implantation embryos during two-cell developmental arrest. J Assisted Reproduction and Genetics DOI: 10.1007/s10815-014-0213-4.
10. Varisli O, Agca C, Agca Y (2013). Short-term storage of rat sperm in the presence of various extenders. J. American Association for Laboratory Animal Sci. 2:732-737.
11. Varisli O, Scott H, Agca C, Agca Y (2013). The effects of cooling rates and type of freezing extenders on cryosurvival of rat sperm. Cryobiology, 67:109-116.
12. Putkhao K, Agca Y, Parnpai R, and Chan AWS (2013).Cryopreservation of transgenic Hunting tin disease Rhesus macaque sperm. Cloning and Transgenesis. 2:1000116
13. Agca C, Yakan A, Agca Y (2013). Estrus synchronization and ovarian hyper-stimulation treatments have negligible effects on cumulus oocyte complex gene expression whereas induction of ovulation causes major expression changes. Mol Reprod Dev. 80:102-117.
14. Kim S, Agca C, Agca Y. (2013). Effects of various physical stress factors on mitochondrial function and reactive oxygen species in rat spermatozoa. Reproduction, Fertility and Development, 25:1051-1064.
15. Cirit U, Bagis H, Demir K, Agca C, Pabuccuoglu S, Varıslı O, Clifford-Rathert C, Agca Y. (2013). Comparison of cryoprotective effects of iodixanol, trehalose and cysteamine on ram semen. Animal Reproduction Science, 139:38-44.
16. Kim S, Agca C, Agca Y. (2012). Changes in rat spermatozoa function after cooling, cryopreservation and centrifugation processes. Cryobiology, 65:215-223.
17. Agca Y. (2012). Genome resource banking of biomedically important laboratory animals. Theriogenology78:1653-1665.
18. Aksu DA, Agca C, Aksu S, Bagis H, Akkoc T, Caputcu AT, Arat S, Taskin AC, Kizil SH, Karasahin T, Akyol N, Satilmis M, Sagirkaya H, Ustuner B, Nur Z, Agca Y. (2012). Gene expression profiles of vitrified in vitro- and in vivo-derived bovine blastocysts. Molecular Reproduction and Development, 79:613-625.
19. Seye C, Agca Y, Agca C, Derbigny W (2012).  P2Y2 Receptor-mediated Lymphotoxin-α (LTA) Secretion Regulates Intercellular Cell Adhesion Molecule (ICAM)-1 Expression in Vascular Smooth Muscle Cells. Journal of Biological Chemistry 23:10535-10543.
20. Walters EM, Agca Y, Ganjam V, Evans T. (2011). Animal models got you puzzled?: Think pig. Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences, 1245: 63–64.
21. Uguz C, Varisli O, Agca C, Agca Y (2009).  Effects of nonylphenol on rat sperm motility, mitochondrial membrane potential, acrosomal and chromatin integrity. Reproductive Toxicology 28:542-549.
22. Varisli O, Uguz C, Agca C, Agca Y (2009). Effect of chilling on rat sperm motility and acrosomal integrity in the presence of various extenders. J.  Lab. Anim. Sci. 48:499-505.
23. Agca C, Lucy M, Agca Y (2009). Gene expression profile of rat ovarian tissue following xeno transplantation into immune-deficient mice. Reproduction 137:957-967.
24. Varisli O, Uguz C, Agca C, Agca Y (2009). Motility and acrosomal integrity comparisons between electro-ejaculated and epididymal ram sperm after exposure to a range of anisosmotic solutions, cryoprotective agents and low temperatures. Animal Reproduction Science 110:256-268.
25. Agca C, Seye C, Shivaji , Kashuba BR, Chan A, Weisman G, Agca Y (2009). Development of a novel transgenic rat over-expressing the P2Y2 nucleotide receptor using a lentiviral vector. J. Vascular Research 46:447-458.
26. Varisli O, Uguz C, Agca C, Agca Y (2009). Various physical stress factors on rat sperm motility and integrity of acrosome and plasma membrane J. Andrology 30:75-86.
27. Keskintepe L, Sher G, Adamowicz M, Machnicka A,  Tortoriello D, Bayrak A, Agca Y. (2009). Vitrification of human embryos subjected to blastomere biopsy for pre-implantation genetic screening produces higher survival and pregnancy rates than traditional freezing. J Assisted Reproduction and Genetics 26:629-635.
28. Keskintepe L, Agca Y, Sher G, Keskintepe M, Ginsburg MS (2009). High survival rate of MII human oocytes after 1st polar body biopsy and vitrification: Determining the effect of pre- vitrification conditions. Fertility and Sterility92:1706-1715.
29. Sher G, Keskintepe L, Mukaida T, Keskintepe M, Ginsburg  M, Agca Y, Maassarani G, Bayrak A (2008). Selective vitrification of euploid oocytes markedly improves survival, fertilization and pregnancy-generating potential. Reprod. BioMedicine Online 17:524-29.
30. Agca C, Fritz J, Walker LC, Levey A, Chan A, Lah JJ, Agca Y (2008). Transgenic rats producing amyloid protein precursor as Alzheimer’s disease model; Transgene and internal APP are regulated similarly. BMC Neuroscience, 9:28 doi:10.1186/1471-2202-9-28.