Current Lab Members and Their Projects
Oscar Braun, PhD, Postdoctoral Fellow
Fiona Murray, PhD, Postdoctoral Fellow
Cyclic nucleotide phosphodiesterases (PDEs) catalyze the hydrolysis of cAMP and cGMP. By controlling the level of cyclic nucleotides PDEs play a key role in both the control of vascular tone, cellular proliferation, hypertrophy, and apoptosis. Currently my research focuses on studying the regulation, interaction, and compartmentalization of specific PDEs in human pulmonary artery smooth muscle cells and T- and B- cells. The aim of my research is to determine if selective PDE inhibitors may provide a therapeutic approach for diseases such as pulmonary hypertension or chronic lymphocytic leukemia.
Hiroshi Yokouchi, PhD, MD, Visiting Scholar
cAMP can be either pro-apoptotic or anti-apoptotic, depending on the cell type. The precise mechanisms for these opposite functions of cAMP on cell death are not known but are important for understanding tissue development as well as normal and abnormal cell growth. The aim of my research is to elucidate “gene expression signatures” that define pro- and anti-apoptotic responses to cAMP and identify targets that regulate abnormal cell growth promoted by cAMP as potential, novel drug targets in certain epithelial cancers.
Anja Zahno, PhD, Visiting Scholar
Alexander Zambon, PhD, Assistant Project Scientist
Lingzhi Zhang, PhD, Assistant Project Scientist
The second messenger cyclic AMP promotes cell death (apoptosis) in certain lymphoid cells including malignant T and B cells. My main focus is to investigate cAMP-mediated gene expression and apoptotic signaling pathway in S49 murine T-lymphoma cells and human B-Chronic lymphocytic leukemia (B-CLL) cells. I am seeking to define targets in this signaling pathway for the treatment of hematological malignancies, such as CLL.