The outcome of most parasitic relationships is decided by an elaborate series of events involving hundreds of proteins. Understanding this interaction requires the analysis of the molecular mechanisms operating in both organisms and the causal relationships acting at the...
Biology: Frizzled receptors in development and disease Our laboratory has focused for the past two decades on a large family of cell-surface receptors called Frizzled. This name refers to the appearance of fruit flies in which the receptor...
We study fundamental cellular processes relevant to human disease. A major research focus in our laboratory is the premature aging disease Hutchinson-Gilford progeria syndrome (HGPS), which results from a mutation in the gene encoding the nuclear scaffold protein lamin...
What are cellular and molecular mechanisms that control tissue regeneration in vivo? Stem cells ensure tissue renewal in most adult tissues, and their activities are under the precise control of signals from specific local microenvironments, or niches. The ability...
We study how epithelial tubular organs – which are essential to life in all multicellular organisms – form and specialize. Using the simple unbranched tubes of the Drosophila salivary gland and the beautifully branched tubular network of the Drosophila...
Messenger RNA (mRNA) translation by the ribosome represents the final step on a complicated molecular dance from DNA to protein. Though classically considered a decipherer that translates our 64-word genetic code into a proteome of astonishing complexity, recent work...
MECHANOTRANSDUCTION AND AUDITORY PERCEPTION Hair cells in the inner ear are mechanosensors for the perception of sound and head movements. Sound signals directly activate mechanically gated ion channels in hair cells, leading to hair cell depolarization and the release...
My lab’s focus is on the development and application of sequencing technologies to gain a deeper understanding of biology and a more accurate set of clinical tools for human disease. Our research integrates the principles of biophysics, molecular biology,...
