Antentor Hinton Jr

Antentor Hinton, Jr. is a tenure-track Assistant Professor Position in the Department of Molecular Physiology and Biophysics in Vanderbilt School of Medicine Basic Sciences at Vanderbilt University (TN, USA) and member of the The Vanderbilt Diabetes Research and Training Center. Dr. Hinton’s United Negro College Fund/Bristol Myers Squibs Funded Project, the Burroughs Wellcome Fund (BWF)’s Career Awards at the Scientific Interface (CASI)., and NIH funded SRP Project aim to elucidate insulin-mediated molecular mechanisms that regulate cristae dynamics and elucidate molecular mechanisms that regulate molecule transfer and morphology changes between the mitochondria, and the endoplasmic reticulum can alter during a pathophysiological state, such as diabetes or cardiovascular disease.

Hinton is a former Burroughs Wellcome Fund Postdoctoral Enrichment Scholar, EE Just Postgraduate Fellow in Life Sciences, and Ford Foundation Fellow at the University of Iowa in the Department of Internal Medicine in the Division of Endocrinology. Dr. Hinton worked in Dr. E. Dale Abel’s Laboratory, the Chair and DEO of Internal Medicine and Director of the Fraternal Order of Eagles Diabetes Research Center. Under the co-mentorship of Dr. E. Dale Abel and Dr. Renata O. Pereira, he elucidated the mechanisms by which insulin signaling regulates Optic Atrophy 1 Protein (OPA1) activity in skeletal muscle. Hinton made the interesting observation that loss of OPA1 in skeletal muscle in vivo and in cultured myotubes is associated with an increase in ER Mitochondrial Contact sites (MERCs). Notably, MERCs are characterized as specialized membranes that are enriched with specific proteins believed to be important for calcium flux, lipid transfer and mitochondria morphology.

Besides this project, he has spent the past couple of years perfecting methodology to rigorously quantify these contact sites using electron microscopy and has become an expert in ultrastructural analysis of inter-organellar interactions in muscle cells. Notably, AJ Hinton has published 32 papers. He also has gleaned 50 awards, including a two-year student loan repayment (LRP) grant from the NIH’s National Institutes on Minority Health and Health Disparities, the Basic Science Research Award during the NIDDK’s Network of Minority Health Research Investigators (NMHRI) Midwest Regional Workshop, the Burroughs Wellcome Fund (BWF)’s Career Awards at the Scientific Interface (CASI). The BWF CASI award is a 500,000 career transition award. In addition, Hinton has mentored 50 graduate and undergraduate students, who have gone on to achieve or currently are in the process of acquiring a Post Baccalaureate Certificate, a Master’s Degree, a Doctor of Philosophy, or a Doctor of Medicine. Dr. Hinton has been a very passionate mentor for undergraduate students, and he has supported the careers of many undergraduates in the Dr. E. Dale Abel’s laboratory. He is an attentive and thoughtful mentor and has successfully obtained competitive support for his mentees from multiple universities and external sources. He has been awarded four university-wide awards and an organizational mentorship award, the Iowa Center for Research by Undergraduates Distinguished Mentoring Award, Center for Diversity & Enrichment’s Distinguished Educator Award, Diversity Catalyst Award, inaugural University of Iowa Health Care DEI Leadership Award, and an LSAMP Excellence in Mentoring Award.

Additionally, Hinton began to collaborate with UI Health Care’s Office of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion on medical campus outreach initiatives. He and the team, led by Associate Dean Dr. Denise Martinez, discussed the need to further emphasize career development for students. They also recognized the need to increase the diversity of their college’s student population. Hinton sought to help address that deficit by becoming a recruiter for the academic medical center, graduate college, and the NIH funded post- baccalaureate program, PREP. Martinez and Abel also worked together to name him an Academic and Career Development Instructor on the diversity team. During this time, with encouragement from the diversity office, he created the 100 inspiring Black Scientists List, 100 more inspiring Black Scientists List, and in collaboration with the Community of Scholars, they curated the 1000 Black Scientists List. Dr. Hinton also did a follow up post discussing the purpose of the 1000 Black Scientists through an addendum list.

From all these efforts around diversity, Hinton has been recognized by Forbes Magazines as one of the 100 Black Culture Makers and Thought- Leaders. This honor was also featured in the 2020 Inaugural Year of the Digital Book Celebrating 100 Black Culture Makers and Thought-Leaders. Notably, Hinton secured a Visiting Postdoctoral Fellow Appointment at Mayo Clinic (MN, USA), where he conducted research in collaboration with Dr. Jeffrey Salisbury. Dr. Salisbury is a world-renowned cell biologist who runs Mayo’s Central Microscopy Core; under his mentorship, Hinton advanced his training in Serial Block-Face Scanning Electron Microscopy (SBF-SEM) and Transmission Electron Microscopy Quantification.

In 2016, Hinton graduated from the Integrative Molecular and Biomedical Sciences Ph.D. Program (IMBS) at Baylor College of Medicine (TX, USA). During his time at Baylor College of Medicine, Dr. Hinton served on the Initiative for Maximizing Student Development Committee, served as the President of the Association of Graduate Student Diversity for two years, and was Vice President of the African American Men’s in Science Association. Notably, Hinton published two first authors and 15 co-author publications during his time in Associate Professor of Pediatrics, Dr. Yong Xu, M.D., Ph.D.’s laboratory. Dr. Hinton’s first authors demonstrated that nuclear receptor, Estrogen Receptor alpha and coactivator, Steroid coactivator 1 in extra hypothalamic sites are important for the control of stress induced hypertension, blood pressure maintenance and aortic stiffness in females. Overall, Dr. Hinton’s coauthor publications focused on identifying estrogenic sites of actions in the brain that control energy homeostasis and binge eating and explored new hypothalamic energy expenditure roles after the ablation of ion channels, deleting novel nuclear receptors, or stimulating with chemical compounds. Additionally, Hinton was fortunate enough to win 26 career development, travel award, research award, oral and poster awards, and graduate fellowship awards during his Ph.D. Dr. Hinton published three co-authors during his rotations before joining his Dissertation laboratory—two focused on bone cancer and one was a clinical paper.

Before his doctorate, Dr. Hinton graduated from the NIH SMART Post Baccalaureate Research Education Program (PREP) at Baylor College of Medicine in 2010, where he finished first in the class. Lastly, Dr. Hinton’s beginning started at the Winston-Salem State University, where he earned a bachelor’s degree in Biology and Minor in Chemistry. Dr. Hinton also played collegial tennis for Winston- Salem State University. During his time on the team, he received the Coach’s Award during his senior year and made the Commissioner’s All- Academic Team for the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC, I-AA) every year that he played. Dr. Hinton enjoys tennis because it allows for him to improve his scientific approach by looking at science from different angles. Lastly, Hinton also participated in the Tri-Beta Biological Honors Society, STEM Scholars Program, and MARC U*STAR Scholars Program.