Current Research and Scholarly Interests
Research in my laboratory focuses on molecular mechanisms of intestinal cell growth control. A primary focus is on function and regulation of the Src family of tyrosine kinases in normal cells, and their deregulation in cancer cells. Molecular, cellular and physiologic approaches are used to explore basic questions about growth regulation. Areas of active investigation include studies of Src function in cell cycle progression, proliferation, differentiation, adhesion, survival and malignant transformation; discovery of endogenous inhibitors of Src kinases; analysis of inhibitor function in cell growth control and apoptosis; and exploration of new drug therapy for colon cancer. Our recent discovery of a Src inhibitor, RACK1, which works both to inhibit growth (by suppressing Src activity at G1 and mitotic checkpoints) and to induce death of colon cells, could be exploited for development of new and more powerful and selective strategies for treatment of human colon cancer.
