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Research Interests:
The ability of a cell to respond to stressors,
both intrinsic and extrinsic, is an essential
characteristic of every living organism. Without
the ability to respond to a stressor, the
organism cannot survive. Stress can come in many
forms and can be managed by dynamic stress
response pathways. To study these complex
pathways, I use the amazing model nematode,
Caenorhabditis elegans. The Ethanol and Stress
Response Element (ESRE) is an 11-basepair
conserved motif, often in the promoter region,
that was found to be a determining factor of
many genes that respond to mitochondrial
insults. Although we have identified ESRE as a
novel stress response network, the components of
the network and specific stimuli have remained
elusive. My project focuses on two main portions
of the ESRE network, identifying the
transcription factor regulating ESRE gene
expression and key regulators of signaling
cascade. With a better understanding of the ESRE
mitochondrial surveillance network, I hope to
apply the new knowledge to creating novel
therapies for human pathologies, such as
neurodegenerative diseases and cancer. |
