Professor
Jacobs School of Medicine & Biomedical Sciences
Cell growth, differentiation and development; Cell Metabolism; Inherited Metabolic Disorders; Membrane Transport (Ion Transport); Molecular and Cellular Biology; RNA; Signal Transduction; Stem Cells; Transcription - Gene; Transcription Factors
Regulation of Kidney Epithelial Cell Growth, Transport and Differentiation
Our laboratory is investigating the molecular mechanisms by which hormones, growth factors and extracellular matrix proteins regulate kidney tubule epithelial cell growth and functional differentiation in vitro. An established canine kidney epithelial cell line, MDCK, and isolated "mutants" are currently being utilized to examine the actions of growth regulatory on the expression of several proteins including the Na+, K+-ATPase and laminin, a glycoprotein in the extracellular matrix. The effects of novel growth regulatory factors on the expression of proteins involved in gluconeogenesis, membrane transport, renal disease and growth control in primary renal cell cultures are being examined. Primary kidney epithelial cells differentiate into nephrons in a reconstituted extracellular matrix proteins is the subject of study.