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Wadie E Bahou, M.D.
Professor, Medicine and Program
in Genetics
Chief, Division of Hematology Associate Program Director,
General Clinical Research Center
Henry Christian Award for Excellence in Clinical Research
NIH Review Subcommittee for Small Business lnnovation Research
Established Investigator, American Heart Association
The research interests of our laboratory focus on genetic disorders
of hemostasis and thrombosis. As such, we focus on identification
of novel genes and signaling pathways involved in platelet and
endothelial cellular activation, and development of novel delivery
methods for definitive genetic treatments.
Dafna Bar-Sagi, Ph.D.
Professor, Molecular Genetics and
Microbiology
We are interested in signal transduction pathways involved in
growth control, focusing on pathways involving Ras proteins.
Their critical role in mediating signals that control cell growth
is indicated by the fact that mutationally activated (oncogenic)
forms of Ras genes have been identified in many types of human
tumors. Our current work is concerned with the control mechanisms
that normally regulate the biological activity of Ras proteins
and the perturbation of this regulation during oncogenic transformation.
Jorge Benach, Ph.D.
Professor Microbiology
NIH Merit Award
Bacteria are known to utilize host proteases to enhance their
own invasiveness. Spirochetes with bound plasmin can move across
biological barriers faster and in greater numbers than organisms
without borrowed proteases. Likewise, bound organisms can degrade
extracellular matrices more effectively. Despite these obvious
advantages of plasmin incorporation to the bacteria, other elements
of the fibrinolytic system may work against bacterial colonization.
Our laboratory studies the interactions of this system with Borrelia,
and the mechanisms that determine the different outcomes to infection.
Our laboratory discovered murine antibodies whose Fab fragments
lyse Borrelia without the assistance of complement. This novel
mechanism of lysis may be a generalized but overlooked host response
to bacterial infection. The manner by which lysis occurs is the
subject of current investigations in our laboratory.
Paul Bingham, Ph.D.
Associate Professor, Biochemistry
and Cell Biology
Our interests are in the molecular genetics and cell biology
of metazoans. Research is focused on regulation of pre-mRNA splicing,
subnuclear organization and the role of chromatin structure in
gene regulation.
James B. Bliska, Ph.D.
Associate Professor. Microbiology
Alexandrine and Alexander L Sinsheimer Fund Scholar,
Pew Scholar in the Biomedical Sciences
From the study of bacterial pathogenesis, we hope to learn how
bacteria cause disease and how to prevent these medically important
infections, as well as increase our understanding of the cell
biology of the mammalian host. The major focus of our research
is to understand how pathogenic bacteria interfere with signal
transduction pathways in mammalian cells.
Daniel Bogenhagen, M.D.
Professor. Pharmacological Sciences
Guggenheim Foundation Fellow,
American Cancer Society Scholar
A large number of human diseases result from errors in synthesis
of proteins required for maintenance of mitochondria. These can
affect expression of the small number of critically important
gene products encoded in mitochondrial DNA or the much larger
collection of approximately 1000 nuclear genes whose products
are imported into mitochondria. Many of the nuclear-encoded proteins
that function in mitochondria remain to be identified. My laboratory
studies the DNA binding proteins and enzymes encoded in nuclear
DNA that are required for maintenance of the mitochondrial genome,
including mitochondrial DNA and RNA polymerases. We employ proteomic
methods to identify novel mitochondrial proteins in addition
to conventional protein purification approaches.
Paul Brehm, Ph.D.
Professor, Neurobiology and Behavior
Our research examines the structure-function relations within
the ligand-gated receptor channel superfamily. Changes in subunit
composition of individual receptors result in developmental changes
in synaptic function throughout the nervous system. Combined
molecular and electrophysiological methodologies dissect the
structural underpinnings of these functional changes.
Deborah Brown, Ph.D.
Associate Professor, Biochemistry
and Cell Biology
We study the structure and function of novel sphingolipid- and
cholesterol-rich membrane microdomains or rafts, which are important
in intracellular sorting and cell-surface signal transduction,
using a combination of biophysical and cell biological approaches.
Model membrane studies show how lipids and proteins interact
in rafts, while studies in cells show how rafts function in vivo.
As part of this effort, we are interested in plasma membrane
pits called caveolae, where rafts can be concentrated.
Vitaly Citovsky, Ph.D.
Associate Professor, Biochemistry
and Cell Biology
We study two basic cellular processes in plants: (1) To understand
how plant cells communicate with each other. We examine the structure,
composition and regulation of plant intercellular connections,
the plasmodesmata. (2) How the cytoplasm and the nucleus within
the same cell communicate. We examine molecular mechanisms by
which proteins and nucleic acids are transported into the plant
cell nucleus.
Neta Dean, Ph.D.
Associate Professor, Biochemistry
and Cell Biology
American Cancer Society Junior Faculty Research Award
For the cell to establish and maintain its structure, resident
organelle proteins must be targeted to their correct location.
We are interested in understanding how the cell targets resident
proteins to one such organelle, the Golgi complex, which is of
fundamental importance for the processing and secretion of proteins.
Dale G. Deustch, Ph.D.
Associate Professor, Biochemistry
and Cell Biology
In 1993 the first endogenous compound (anandamide) was described
which binds to the cannabinoid receptor. In the same year we
discovered the enzyme in the brain which hydrolyzes anandamide
and other neuromodulatory fatty acids (anandamide amidase or
fatty acid amide hydrolase, FAAH). With the long-term goal of
developing drugs to regulate the endo-cannabinoids, we studied
a large variety of inhibitors. In addition we described its presence
in various tissues including kidneys (where it controls vasodilatation)
and the uterus (where it is involved in reproduction). We have
undertaken mutagenesis studies on the amidase to determine the
active site of the enzyme and the role of a proline rich region,
which may interact, with an SH3 domain of other proteins. Presently
we are studying the presence of this enzyme in the nervous system
at the cellular level and at the level of the synapse using electron
microscopy. We are also very interested in its uptake and degradation
at the cellular level. Our long-term goal is to understand how
these neurotransmitters and their regulation effect mood, memory,
pain and other physiological processes.
JoAnne Engebrecht, Ph.D.
Associate Professor, Pharmacological
Sciences
Catacosinos Young Investigator Award for Cancer Research
The focus of our laboratory is to elucidate the function of genes
that play critical roles in cell signaling, differentiation,
and replication. We use genetic, molecular, cell biological and
biochemical approaches in the yeast Sacchromyces cerevisiae to
identify and characterize these genes. By exploiting the powerful
genetics of yeast, we hope to elucidate the function of these
proteins and ultimately use this knowledge to devise strategies
for effective treatment of cancer and other human diseases.
Paul Fisher, M.D., Ph.D.
Professor, Pharmacological Sciences
Guest Research Fellow of the Royal Society (UK)
The central objective of the laboratory is to understand how
proteinaceous structural elements of the nucleus act to regulate
nuclear structure and function. Other research deals with the
enzymology of eukaryotic DNA polymerases and with the reconstitution
of eukaryotic DNA replication in vitro.
Howard Fleit, Ph.D.
Associate Professor, Pathology
Catacosinos Cancer Award,
Alexandrine and Alexander L. Sinsheimer Fund Scholar
Receptors for immunoglobulin molecules (FcR) mediate phagocytosis
of antibody coated microorganisms and in response to immune complexes
trigger the release of lysosomal enzymes and initiate the generation
of reactive oxygen intermediates. Our laboratory is examining
the molecular mechanisms by which different classes of FcR initiate
the cellular effector mechanisms involved in these immune and
inflammatory responses by studying the signal transduction pathways
that are most proximal to the binding of immune complexes to
the FcR.
Michael Frohman, M.D., Ph.D.
Associate Professor, Pharmacological Sciences
We are presently engaged in two distinct but interconnected topics:
the role that transcription factors play in early mammalian development,
and the role that a family of enzymes involved in signal transduction
play in development and more generally in cell biology. Roles
for the latter primarily involve vesicular transport as it relates
to secretion, endocytosis, and structural alterations in cells
such as the extension of neurites. Several new genes that control
different aspects of these processes are presently being characterized
in model systems. Experiments in progress include structural
and cell biological studies as well as misexpressing the genes
using transgenic technology and inactivating them using homologous
recombination or RNA interference to examine their physiological
function. Experimental approaches and systems include molecular
biology, biochemistry, mammalian cell culture, yeast, Drosophila,
and mice.
Martha Furie, Ph.D.
Professor, Pathology
Alexandrine and Alexander L. Sinsheimer Fund Scholar,
Aaron Diamond Foundation Scholar
During inflammation, white blood cells leave the bloodstream
and enter tissues, where their excessive accumulation may contribute
to tissue injury. The major focus of my laboratory is to identify
mechanisms that regulate passage of white blood cells into injured
tissues and their subsequent clearance from such areas. A better
understanding of these mechanisms may aid in development of new
therapies for treatment of acute and chronic inflammatory conditions.
Bruce Futcher, Ph.D.
Associate Professor, Microbiology
Our laboratory is interested in cell cycle control, particularly
with regard to commitment to the cycle, and to the role of cyclin-dependent
protein kinases. Also our laboratory is interested in aging and
particularly the role played by the shortening of telomeres.
J. Peter Gergen, Ph.D.
Professor, Biochemistry and Cell Biology
American Cancer Society Faculty Research Award
Our laboratory investigates basic mechanisms for regulating gene
expression during development. Molecular genetic, biochemical
and classical genetic approaches are being used to study the
regulation and function of the transcriptional regulatory protein
encoded by the Drosophila runt gene. This protein is the founding
member of a family of developmental regulators that have important
roles in processes extending from pattern formation in insect
embryos to leukemogenesis in humans.
Simon Halegoua, Ph.D.
Professor, Neurobiology and Behavior
My laboratory has been using the PC12 clonal cell line as a model
system for the study of NGF actions. When treated with NGF, PC12
cells undergo a dramatic transformation strikingly along the
lines of differentiating sympathetic neurons. We are dissecting
the signal transduction pathways for NGF actions in PC12 cells
using a variety of approaches.
Robert Haltiwanger, Ph.D.
Associate Professor, Biochemistry
and Cell Biology
Neose Grant Awardee
Our laboratory investigates the structure and function of two
unique forms of protein O-glycosylation, O-fucose and O-glucose
that occur exclusively on Epidermal Growth Factor-like (EGF)
modules. We have demonstrated that many of the tandem EGF modules
in the Notch family of receptors are modified with O-fucose and
O-glucose and that the O-fucose modifications play a key role
in regulation of interactions between Notch and its ligands.
The regulation of signal transduction by alterations in the glycosylation
state of a cell surface receptor provides a new paradigm for
the role of glycosylation in signaling events.
Michael Hayman, Ph.D.
Professor, Microbiology
Catacosinos Professorship for Cancer Research
Our research is directed towards growth and differentiation of
erythroid and myeloid progenitor cells; effects of oncogenes
on the growth and differentiation of hematopoietic cells; signal
transduction pathways, as they relate to cell transformation
and cancer.
Patrick Hearing, Ph.D.
Professor, Molecular Genetics and
Microbiology
The research in my laboratory focuses in two areas: adenovirus
regulation of cellular proliferation, and adenovirus as a vector
for gene therapy.
Bernadette Holdener, Ph.D.
Associate Professor, Biochemistry
and Cell Biology
My laboratory is interested in the genetic basis for problems
in early mammalian development. The focus of the lab is the characterization
of a mouse mutation that causes abnormal development during gastrulation
(comparable to the first trimester in human development). We
are currently cloning the gene responsible for this mutation
and will characterize its role in development.
Nancy Hollingsworth, Ph.D.
Associate Professor, Biochemistry
and Cell Biology
Pew Scholar in the Biomedical Sciences
Our research is directed toward understanding how homologous
chromosomes synapse, recombine and segregate during meiosis in
yeast. Genes encoding structural and regulatory components important
for chromosome synapsis are first identified genetically. The
functions of these genes are then determined using a combination
of genetic, biochemical, cytological and molecular biological
approaches.
Jen-Chih Hsieh, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor, Biochemistry
and Cell Biology
The Wnt signaling pathway, a highly conserved pathway in the
animal kingdom, plays key roles in the integral development of
an organism. Mutations that disrupt this signaling pathway lead
to profound developmental defects at embryonic stages in a number
of tissues and organs, such as central nervous
system, kidney, reproductive organs, limbs, and placenta. When
uncontrolled, this signaling pathway also causes several human
cancers, such as melanoma and colon cancers. Previous studies
by a number of groups have identified several essential intracellular
components in transducing the signal into the
nucleus to initiate expression of genes that control the proliferation,
differentiation and migration of the cells. The long-term objective
of our lab is to understand the molecular mechanisms by which
Wnt signals are transduced in a regulated manner and how disruption
of this mechanism leads to developmental defects. Our current
researches focus on: 1) Determining the mechanism by which the
receptors transduce the Wnt signals downstream; 2) Characterizing
the biochemical and structural properties of Wnt proteins through
systematic mutagenesis and functional assays, with the long-term
goal
of solving the structure of a Wnt protein; 3) Screen for molecules
or chemical agents capable of modulating Wnt signaling; 4) Identifying
factors governing the specificity of interactions between Wnts
and their receptors; 5) Identifying genes responsive to Wnt signaling.
A. Wali Karzai, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor, Biochemistry and Cell Biology
Specific complexes of protein and RNA carry out many essential
biological functions, including RNA processing, RNA turnover,
RNA folding, as well as the translation of genetic information
from mRNA into protein sequences. Our group is interested in
studying RNA-protein interactions and translational control of
gene expression. A major research focus in my lab concerns the
SmpB·SsrA quality control system for protein tagging,
directed degradation, and ribosome rescue (see Figure below).
We are also interested in understanding how sequence and structure
in RNA-binding proteins contribute to the formation of specific
RNA-protein complexes and how these complexes promote specific
biological functions. We use a combination of protein biochemistry,
functional genomics, bioinformatics, and X-ray crystallography
to determine the biological function and mechanism of action
of specific RNA-protein complexes.
Eugene Katz, Ph.D.
Professor, Molecular Genetics and
Microbiology
Associate Dean, College of Arts and Sciences
Chancellor's Award for Excellence in Teaching
Our laboratory studies the role of the plasma membrane in the
growth and development of the cellular slime mold Dictyostelium
discoideum. Our approach is to select and characterize mutants
resistant to agents that act on the membrane, such as detergents
and polyene antibiotics. We are currently using the Dictyostelium
transformation system in an effort to clone the genes responsible
for generating the resistance.
Maurice Kernan, Ph.D.
Associate Professor, Neurobiology
and Behavior
Pew Scholar in the Biomedical Sciences
We aim to understand the molecular basis of the mechanical senses
- hearing, balance and touch. Using Drosophila as a model system,
we isolate behavioral mutants with defects in mechanosensory
electrophysiology, then clone and study the affected genes. One
gene encodes a novel protein that links sensory neurons to external
structures; another, a protein localized in centrioles and differentiating
cilia. We are now studying their roles in the differentiation
and operation of ciliated sensory cells.
Caroline Kisker, Ph.D.
Associate Professor, Pharmacological Sciences
Karl Ramsauer Award, Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft Fellowship,
Targeted Research Opportunity Award, SUNY, Stony Brook
Mutations are the primary cause of hereditary diseases, as well
as cancer, and may also be involved in aging. The focus of our
research is to study the universal DNA repair mechanism of nucleotide
excision repair mediated by UvrABC. We are characterizing the
individual proteins of this system and their complexes both with
and without their substrates to understand how substrate recognition
is achieved. A second area of research focuses on the molybdenum-cofactor
containing enzymes. In humans, genetic deficiencies of sulfite
oxidase and xanthine dehydrogenase lead to severe abnormalities.
We are characterizing both enzymes on the atomic level to understand
their catalytic mechanism and to elucidate the structural changes
caused by mutations, which lead to the described deficiencies.
James B. Konopka, Ph.D.
Associate Professor, Microbiology
American Cancer Society Junior Faculty Research Award
Our lab has a specific interest in the complex function of the
pheromone receptors. The receptors bind pheromone on the cell
surface and then stimulate a G protein signaling cascade. The
mechanisms of receptor signaling are being investigated through
the analysis of mutant receptors. We are also studying the mechanisms
used to regulate receptor signaling and have identified a gene,
AFRl, that acts to regulate receptor signaling. The regulation
of receptor signaling plays an important role in allowing cells
to polarize growth toward an appropriate partner cell.
Janet Leatherwood, Ph.D.
Associate Professor, Molecular Genetics
and Microbiology
Kimmel Scholar Award, FASEB Junior Investigtor Award, Leukemia
Society of America Special Fellow. American Cancer Society Fellow
My main interest is how events of the cell cycle are regulated
and coordinated. We are using fission yeast as a model system
to investigate control of DNA replication by the cell cyle kinase
Cdc2. Our goal is to determine how subcellular localization or
substrate targeting directs the global regulator Cdc2 to control
specific events such as initiation of DNA replication.
William J. Lennarz, Ph.D.
Leading Professor, Biochemistry
and cell Biology; Director, Institute for Cell and Developmental
Biology; Member, National Academy of Sciences; Past President,
American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology; NIH
Merit Award; DuPont Distinguished Lectureship, Indiana University;
Storer Lecturer; U.C. Davis
Our research is to better understand glycoprotein biosynthesis
and the folding of newly synthesized glycoproteins. Genetic and
recombinant DNA techniques in yeast, along with the tools of
membrane biochemistry, are being used in these experiments. In
addition, cell and molecular biological approaches are being
used to study the function of glycoproteins involved in three
key events in sea urchin fertilization. In addition we are studying
fertilization in a vertebrate organism, the frog.
Erwin London, Ph.D.
Professor, Chemistry; Biochemistry
and Cell Biology
We are studying the translocation of proteins across membranes
using the translocation of diphtheria toxin as a model. A variety
of spectroscopic, biochemical and immunochemical methods are
being used to determine the structure of the membrane inserted
toxin, including use of site-directed mutagenesis to create toxins
with single fluorescent sites. A fluorescence quenching method
developed in our lab is being used to determine the depths of
these fluorescent sites within the membrane. In other ongoing
projects we are studying the basic folding of membrane proteins
using transmembrane hydrophobic helices, and the role of cholesterol
in membrane structure and function.
Craig Malbon, Ph.D.
Professor, Pharmacological Sciences
Member, Corporation of the Marine Biological Laboratory; Vice-Dean,
University Medical Center, SUNY Stony Brook
Our research employs antisense RNA technology in tandem with
transgenic mouse models to explore the role of G-proteins in
differentiation and neonatal development. Differentiation and
development are orchestrated by interacting signaling pathways
involving nuclear receptors (steriods), intrinsic tyrosine kinase
receptors, and G-protein linked receptors. G-proteins are proto-oncogenes
in man, controlling cell proliferation and differentiation.
Gail Mandel, Ph.D.
Professor, Neurobiology and Behavior
National Science Foundation Faculty Award for Women Scientists
and Engineers; McKnight Fellowship in Neurosciences; Howard Hughes
Medical lnstitute Investigator; NIH Javits Neuroscience Investigator
Award
We have had a long-standing interest in identifying molecules
important in the regulation of neuronal phenotype. We have identified
a repressor mechanism that controls expression of a large number
of genes essential for nerve function. A role for this mechanism
in neurogenesis, stem cell differentiation, and tissue regeneration
is under investigation. By combining imaging and molecular approaches,
we are also studying distribution and movement of regulatory
molecules in mature neurons in behaving zebrafish.
Kenneth Marcu, Ph.D.
Professor, Biochemistry and Cell
Biology, Microbiology, and Pathology Member, Scientific Advisory
Board, Small Molecule Therapeutics; Honorary Professor; University
of France, Versailles; NIH Research Career Development Award
Our research focuses on the mechanisms and regulation of antibody
gene class switching and on the role of NF- kappa B signaling
cascade in immune and inflammatory responses.
W. Todd Miller, Ph.D.
Associate Professor, Physiology and Biophysics
Catacosinos Young Investigator Award for Cancer Research
The major research goals of our laboratory are: to understand how tyrosine
kinases recognize their target proteins in cells; to determine how these
enzymes are regulated in normal cells; and to develop strategies to
block the action of oncogenic tyrosine kinases. Work in the laboratory
is focused on nonreceptor tyrosine kinases of the Src-family, as well
as on the tyrosine kinase domains of the human Neu, insulin, and IGF-I
receptors.
Aaron Neiman, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor, Biochemistry
and Cell Biology
The research interest of my laboratory is in developmentally
programmed rearrangements of the secretory pathway that occur
during differentiation. We are studying the process of spore
formation in the budding yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae as a
model for this type of rearrangement. In this instance, as reorganization
of the secretory pathway to form a novel membrane compartment
is executed in a coordinate fashion with exit from the meiotic
cycle. We are using a variety of genetic, biochemical and cell
biological techniques to understand this process.
Joav Prives, Ph.D.
Associate Professor, Pharmacological
Sciences
Our research is centered on mechanisms that regulate interactions
between cells. We utilize cell cultures to study the role of
transmembrane signaling in the differentiation of muscle cells.
Focusing on developmental changes in biochemical properties of
muscle cell membranes associated with neuromuscular synapse formation,
we are studying the expression of nicotinic acetylcholine receptors
(AChRs) on cell surfaces.
Nancy Reich, Ph.D.
Professor; Pathology
American Cancer Society Junior Faculty Research Award, Catacosinos
Cancer Award NIH CDF-1 Study Section Member
Cells respond to a multitude of diverse stimuli with rapid and
specific biological changes. The binding of cytokine hormones
to cell surface receptors results in tyrosine phosphorylation
of latent transcription factors known as signal transducers and
activators of transcription (STATs). Phosphorylated STATs translocate
to the nucleus to activate a specific set of genes that alters
the physiology of the cell. Cells also respond to viral infection
with the activation of a distinct transcription factor that initiates
expression of genes involved in cellular defense. Present work
is directed at elucidating the molecular mechanisms that regulate
these response pathways.
Nisson Schechter, Ph.D.
Professor, Psychiatry and Behavioral
Science; Biochemistry and Cell Biology; Opthalmology
The focus of our research is to discover and characterize specific
proteins that support and regulate the development and regeneration
of nerves. We showed that the expression of certain intermediate
filament proteins and homeobox gene products are linked to retinal
development and axonal growth in the goldfish visual pathway.
More recently we have been using zebrafish embryos to study the
regulation and expression of these genes during the early stages
of neurogenesls.
Hermann Schindelin, Ph.D.
Associate Professor, Biochemistry and
Cell Biology
Our laboratory uses crystallographic and biochemical methods
to study the structure and function of biological macromolecules.
There are currently several major topics: (i) Structural and
functional studies of enzymes involved in the biosynthesis of
the molybdenum cofactor. (ii) Characterization of enzymes containing
the molybdenum cofactor aimed at an understanding of the enzyme
mechanism and the role the cofactor plays during the catalytic
cycle. (iii) Investigations into the mechanisms of ubiquitin-dependent
protein degradation, especially ubiquitin activation and transfer.
Jakob Schmidt, Ph.D.
Professor, Biochemistry and Cell
Biology
NIH Javits Neuroscience Investigator Award
The focus of our research is on the regulation of acetylcholine
receptor genes in skeletal muscle. Specifically we are interested
in molecular mechanisms (promoter elements, transcription factors,
and upstream signaling pathways) that ensure the synapse-specific
expression of the receptor protein in the mature muscle fiber.
Sanford Simon, Ph.D.
Professor, Biochemistry and Cell
Biology; Pathology
Alfred P. Sloan Fellow; NIH Research Career Development Award
We develop strategies to inhibit the serine proteases and matrix
metalloproteases released by human neutrophils and macrophages
in order to control the tissue destruction, which often accompanies
the inflammatory response in vivo. We quantitatively model connective
tissue injury and leukocyte invasion in vitro with a complete
interstitial extracellular matrix grown from cultured mesenchymal
cells. To understand how inflammatory cells communicate we study
their paracrine activation by cytokines, using chemical and immunofluorescent
probes and flow cytometry.
Steven Smith, Ph.D.
Professor, Biochemistry and Cell
Biology
Director, Structural Biology Program
We are interested in the mechanism of signal transduction by
G protein-coupled receptors, a large family of membrane proteins
that mediate a range of biological processes from vision and
olfaction to growth and development. We are also interested in
how membrane proteins in the receptor tyrosine kinase family
misfunction leading to breast and ovarian cancer in the case
of the neu receptor or are activated by viral proteins in the
case of the E5 protein of bovine papillomavirus.
Rolf Sternglanz, Ph.D.
Professor, Biochemistry and Cell
Biology
Guggenheim Foundation Fellow
Our laboratory uses the budding yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae
to identity mutants and characterize genes affecting structure
and function of the nucleus. This includes genes coding for proteins
involved in gene regulation, DNA replication and chromatin structure.
Gerald Thomsen, Ph.D.
Associate Professor, Biochemistry
and Cell Biology
Research in the laboratory is focused on how peptide growth factors
regulate early vertebrate development using the frog and the
zebrafish as experimental organisms. Studies are centered on
the functions of members of the transforming growth factor ß(TGF-ß)
superfamily in mesoderm formation and organogenesis. The regulation
of TGF-ß members by proteolytic processing during development
is also under investigation.
James Trimmer, Ph.D.
Professor, Biochemistry and Cell
Biology
NIH Jacob Javits Neuroscience Investigator (MERIT) Award
American Heart Association Established Investigator
We are interested in the cell biology of mammalian neurons, and
in the regulation of neuronal membrane protein trafficking and
localization. Specifically, we focus on the ion channel proteins
that underlie electrical excitability. We are studying the selective
protein-protein interactions between component subunits of these
channels and between these channel complexes and other neuronal
proteins. These processes together determine the abundance and
distribution of these proteins on the neuronal cell surface and
shape the signalling phenotype of the cell.
Stella Tsirka, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor, Pharmacological
Sciences and Psychiatry
We are interested in understanding the interactions and signaling
that take place between the neurons and the microglia, the immune
cells of the central nervous system. This communication is evident
during pathological events that include acute trauma, stroke,
or chronic neurodegenerative diseases. Furthermore we are exploring
the possibility that the two cell types interact to promote normal
functions of the mammalian CNS, such as learning, memory and
neuronal plasticity.
David Williams, Ph.D.
Professor, Pharmacological Sciences
NIH Merit Award
We study the cell biology of lipoprotein receptors, cholesterol
transport, and atherosclerosis. We are currently studying the
mechanisms by which scavenger receptor BI (SR-BI) mediates the
uptake of cholesteryl ester from HDL particles and how this receptor
alters cell membrane lipid domains and free cholesterol flux.
Another focus is on very early events in atherosclerosis development
in the aortic wall. To study these events we made a transgenic
gene knockout mouse model in which very low levels of apolipoprotein
E expression block lesion formation without correcting hypercholesterolemia.
Lonnie Wollmuth, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor, Neurobiology
and Behavior
A. Sinsheimer Scholars Award
My lab is interested in understanding the molecular mechanism
of cell-to-cell signaling in the brain. We focus primarily on
fast synaptic transmission, especially those synapses that use
the excitatory neurotransmitter glutamate. Our studies extend
from elucidating the structure of glutamate receptors to defining
how their properties contribute to the versatility of synaptic
transmission and plasticity in vivo, especially during behavior
and development.
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