Associate Professor, Physiology & Biophysics
School of Medicine

Joint appointment, Ophthalmology
School of Medicine

Joint appointment, Department of Clinical Pharmacy Practice
School of Pharmacy & Pharmaceutical Sciences

Member, Center for Translational Vision Research

Vision Science, retinal diseases, retinoid biochemistry, carotenoid oxygenases, pharmacology, crystallography

Center for Translational Vision Research Homepage

Google Scholar page

My laboratory studies the enzymes, transporters and binding proteins that comprise a metabolic pathway known as the visual cycle as well as a variety of other proteins important for the health of the retina. We use an array of experimental techniques and methodologies, including X-ray crystallography, electron microscopy, knockout mouse models, and classic biochemistry approaches to answer important questions about the structure and function of these proteins. Major emphasis is placed on the use of such information to develop effective therapeutics for currently untreatable retinal diseases.

Pisart Award in Vision Science, Lighthouse Guild, 2020

March of Dimes Travel Award, FASEB Biology and Chemistry of Vision Conference, 2015

NIH Pediatric Research Loan Repayment Program Award, 2006-2010

Doctoral Excellence Award in Pharmacology, Case Western Reserve University, 2010

Merck Award for Highest Rank Collectively in Pharmacology, Pharmacy Practice, Therapeutics, and Medicinal Chemistry, St. Louis College of Pharmacy, 2004

Daruwalla A, Sui X, Kiser PD#. Preparation of carotenoid cleavage dioxygenases for X-ray crystallography. Methods Enzymol. 2022;671:243-271.
#Corresponding

Occelli LM, Daruwalla A, De Silva SR, Winkler PA, Sun K, Pasmanter N, Minella A, Querubin J, Lyons LA; 99 Lives Consortium, Robson AG, Heon E, Michaelides M, Webster AR, Palczewski K, Vincent A, Mahroo OA, Kiser PD, Petersen-Jones SM. A large animal model of RDH5-associated retinopathy recapitulates important features of the human phenotype. Hum Mol Genet. 2022 Apr 22;31(8):1263-1277.

Sander CL, Luu J, Kim K, Furkert D, Jang K, Reichenwallner J, Kang M, Lee HJ, Eger BT, Choe HW, Fiedler D, Ernst OP, Kim YJ, Palczewski K, Kiser PD#. Structural evidence for visual arrestin priming via complexation of phosphoinositols. Structure. 2022 Feb 3;30(2):263-277.e5.
#Corresponding

Sander, C. L., Sears, A. E., Pinto, A. F. M., Choi, E. H., Kahremany, S., Gao, F., Salom, D., Jin, H., Pardon, E., Suh, S., Dong, Z., Steyaert, J., Saghatelian, A., Skowronska-Krawczyk, D.#, Kiser, P. D.#, and Palczewski, K.# (2021) Nano-scale resolution of native retinal rod disk membranes reveals differences in lipid composition. J. Cell Biol. 220
#Co-corresponding

Choi, E. H., Suh, S., Einstein, D. E., Leinonen, H., Dong, Z., Rao, S. R., Fliesler, S. J., Blackshaw, S., Yu, M., Peachey, N. S., Palczewski, K., and Kiser, P. D.# (2021) An inducible Cre mouse for studying roles of the RPE in retinal physiology and disease. JCI Insight 6
#Corresponding

Blum, E., Zhang, J., Zaluski, J., Einstein, D. E., Korshin, E., Kubas, A., Gruzman, A.#, Tochtrop, G. P.#, Kiser, P. D.#, and Palczewski, K.# (2021) Rational alteration of pharmacokinetics of chiral fluorinated and deuterated derivatives of emixustat for retina therapies. J. Med. Chem. 64, 8287-8302
#Co-corresponding

York, N. J., Lockart, M. M., Sardar, S., Khadka, N., Shi, W., Stenkamp, R. E., Zhang, J., Kiser, P. D.#, and Pierce, B. S.# (2021) Structure of 3-mercaptopropionic acid dioxygenase with a substrate analog reveals bidentate substrate binding at the iron center. J. Biol. Chem. 100492
#Co-corresponding

Kolesnikov, A. V., Kiser, P. D., Palczewski, K., and Kefalov, V. J. (2021) Function of mammalian M-cones depends on the level of CRALBP in Muller cells. J. Gen. Physiol. 153

Kiser, P.D., and Palczewski, K. (2021) Pathways and disease-causing alterations in visual chromophore production for vertebrate vision. J. Biol. Chem. 296

Daruwalla, A., Zhang, J., Lee, H. J., Khadka, N., Farquhar, E. R., Shi, W., von Lintig, J., and Kiser, P. D.# (2020) Structural basis for carotenoid cleavage by an archaeal carotenoid dioxygenase. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 117, 19914-19925
#Corresponding

Suh, S., Choi, E. H., Leinonen, H., Foik, A. T., Newby, G. A., Yeh, W. H., Dong, Z., Kiser, P. D., Lyon, D. C., Liu, D. R., and Palczewski, K. (2020) Restoration of visual function in adult mice with an inherited retinal disease via adenine base editing. Nat Biomed Eng 5, 169-178

Gazda, M. A., Toomey, M. B., Araujo, P. M., Lopes, R. J., Afonso, S., Myers, C. A., Serres, K., Kiser, P. D., Hill, G. E., Corbo, J. C., and Carneiro, M. (2020) Genetic Basis of De Novo Appearance of Carotenoid Ornamentation in Bare-Parts of Canaries. Mol. Biol. Evol. 37, 1317-1328

Kiser, P.D. (2019) Alkene-cleaving carotenoid cleavage dioxygenases. in Encyclopedia of Inorganic and Bioinorganic Chemistry (Scott, R. A. ed.), John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. 1-13

Kiser, P. D.#, Kolesnikov, A. V., Kiser, J. Z., Dong, Z., Chaurasia, B., Wang, L., Summers, S. A., Hoang, T., Blackshaw, S., Peachey, N. S., Kefalov, V. J., and Palczewski, K. (2019) Conditional deletion of Des1 in the mouse retina does not impair the visual cycle in cones. FASEB J. 33, fj201802493R
#Corresponding

Khadka, N., Farquhar, E. R., Hill, H. E., Shi, W., von Lintig, J., and Kiser, P. D.# (2019) Evidence for distinct rate-limiting steps in the cleavage of alkenes by carotenoid cleavage dioxygenases. J. Biol. Chem. 294, 10596-10606
#Corresponding

Sui, X., Farquhar, E. R., Hill, H. E., von Lintig, J., Shi, W., and Kiser, P. D.#(2018) Preparation and characterization of metal-substituted carotenoid cleavage oxygenases. Journal of Biological Inorganic Chemistry 23, 887-901
#Corresponding

Choi, E. H., Suh, S., Sander, C. L., Hernandez, C. J. O., Bulman, E. R., Khadka, N., Dong, Z., Shi, W., Palczewski, K.#, and Kiser, P. D.# (2018) Insights into the pathogenesis of dominant retinitis pigmentosa associated with a D477G mutation in RPE65. Human Molecular Genetics 27, 2225-2243
#Co-corresponding

Kiser, P. D.#, Zhang, J., Sharma, A., Angueyra, J. M., Kolesnikov, A. V., Badiee, M., Tochtrop, G. P., Kinoshita, J., Peachey, N. S., Li, W., Kefalov, V. J.#, and Palczewski, K.# (2018) Retinoid isomerase inhibitors impair but do not block mammalian cone photoreceptor function. Journal of General Physiology 150, 571-590
#Co-corresponding

Sui, X., Weitz, A. C., Farquhar, E. R., Badiee, M., Banerjee, S., von Lintig, J., Tochtrop, G. P., Palczewski, K., Hendrich, M. P.#, and Kiser, P. D.# (2017) Structure and Spectroscopy of Alkene-Cleaving Dioxygenases Containing an Atypically Coordinated Non-Heme Iron Center. Biochemistry 56, 2836-2852
#Co-corresponding

Kiser, P. D., Zhang, J., Badiee, M., Kinoshita, J., Peachey, N. S., Tochtrop, G. P., and Palczewski, K. (2017) Rational Tuning of Visual Cycle Modulator Pharmacodynamics. Journal of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics 362, 131-145

Sui, X., Zhang, J., Golczak, M., Palczewski, K., and Kiser, P. D. (2016) Key Residues for Catalytic Function and Metal Coordination in a Carotenoid Cleavage Dioxygenase. Journal of Biological Chemistry 291, 19401-19412

Kiser, P. D., Zhang, J., Badiee, M., Li, Q., Shi, W., Sui, X., Golczak, M., Tochtrop, G. P., and Palczewski, K. (2015) Catalytic mechanism of a retinoid isomerase essential for vertebrate vision. Nature Chemical Biology 11, 409-415

I01 BX004939-01 4/1/2020 – 3/31/2024 Department of Veterans Affairs Title: Modulation of retinoid reactivity and pathological signaling in retinal therapeutics Role: PI

NSF-2107713 9/1/2021 – 8/31/2024 National Science Foundation Title: Unraveling the principles of catalytic diversity in the carotenoid oxygenase superfamily Role: PI

The Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology

Protein Society

Research Health Scientist
VA Long Beach Healthcare System 2015—pres

Staff Pharmacist
Pharmacy Systems Inc. 2014—2018

Staff Pharmacist
CVS Pharmacy 2005—2008

Registered Pharmacist, State of California
2022—pres

Registered Pharmacist, State of Ohio
2005—pres

Cellular and Molecular Biosciences

Interdepartmental Neuroscience Program

Center for Translational Vision Research

Link to this profile
https://faculty.uci.edu/profile/?facultyId=6487

Last updated
10/06/2022