Signal Transduction

Studies of Heparanase (HPSE) expression during Endochondral bone formation from the Dan Carson and Cindy Farach-Carson Labs

Signals regulate an enormous number of different processes in biology. Understanding andcontrolling the pathways sensing these signals can yield important benefits for medicine, agriculture, and biotechnology.  At Rice, we are studying aspects of signal transduction in bacteria, crustaceans, Dictyostelium, Drosophila, humans, plants, and yeast. A highly interactive group of researchers in the labs briefly described below work& on aspects of signal transduction ranging from the signals themselves to their final effects on cells and organisms.

Faculty links:

Bonnie Bartel:  Genetic approaches to understanding peroxisome biogenesis and function; plant responses to and metabolism of the growth hormone auxin (lab home page).

Kathleen M. Beckingham:  The roles of the calcium sensor proteins Calmodulin and Androcam in calcium signaling, as investigated by genetic approaches in the whole organism, molecular interaction studies, and biophysical structural studies.

Matthew Bennett :  Studies of the dynamics of gene regulation - from small-scale interactions such as transcription and translation, to the large-scale dynamics of gene regulatory networks, using a hybrid experimental and computational approach.

Janet Braam:  The signal transduction pathways that enable plants to respond to mechanical force, such as touch, gravity and wounding.  The Braam lab is also studying potential feedback pathways that plant cells may use to maintain cell wall integrity (lab home page).

Flavohemoglobin collaboration from the John Olson and Mike Gustin Labs

Daniel Carson:  Expression and function of cell surface components involved in embryonic development and tumor cell models. Study of the heparan sulfate proteoglycan perlecan.

Mary C. (Cindy) Farach-Carson:  The role of extracellular matrix in the progression of cancer; the use of proteoglycans in the engineering of connective tissues.

Michael C. Gustin:  Genetic and molecular tools to elucidate signaling pathways that mediate stress induction of gene expression in animals and fungi, starting with the osmosensing HOG MAP kinase pathway uncovered first in yeast and extended now to studies of oxidant-activated signaling pathways in fungi and osmosensing pathways in Drosophila.

Studies of calcium sensors in A. thaliana from the Braam Lab

Peter Lwigale :  Molecular regulation of neural crest cells during corneal development and neural crest-derived stromal keratocytes during cornea regeneration; using the quail, chick, and mouse embryos as a model systems.

Michael Stern:  Molecular, genetic and electrophysiological analysis of ion channels and synaptic transmission in Drosophila melanogaster; intercellular signaling within the Drosophila segmental nerve.

Charles R. Stewart:  Anti-viral properties of bacterial two-component response regulator systems that respond to environmental changes such as high osmolarity.