Research
Research in the Department includes a training program centering on the following scientific areas:
Cellular Signaling and Regulation:
Signal transduction, phosphoinositide kinases, endocrine hormone signaling, vesicular trafficking, cell membrane transporters, micropinocytosis, microtubule cytoskeleton, and mechanotransduction.
Transcriptional and Translational Control:
Histone biology, transcription/elongation control, epigenetic modifications, RNA splicing, ribosome function, and mechanism of mRNA translation.
Cancer, Invasion, and Metastasis:
Oncogenic and tumor-suppressor genes, tumor-stroma interactions, cancer cell migration, glycosylation, and cell-ECM interactions.
Mechanisms of Drug Action and Resistance:
Anti-cancer drugs, cytoskeleton-targeting therapeutics, treatment-induced apoptosis, senescence, treatment-persistent cancer cell states, and microenvironment-induced drug resistance.
Physiology and Toxicology:
Smooth muscle function, cell motility, skeletal tissue, neuronal cells, energy metabolism, adipose tissue and lipogenesis, ion channels, neurotoxicity, microbiome-host interactions, and innate immunity.
Our approaches encompass molecular characterization (transcriptomics, translational profiling, proteomics, metabolomics, etc.) and functional interrogation (functional genomics and tool compounds) of normal and abnormal biological systems aiming to understand and develop therapeutic interventions for cancer, diabetes, thyroid, cardiac pathogenesis, wound healing, urogenital disorders, behavioral disorders, learning, and depression, neurodevelopmental, and neurodegenerative disorders. Advanced animal models and human-derived specimens are frequently used in these efforts to ensure that our research is at the forefront of translational science. Close collaboration with Einstein’s core facilities and resources enables access to state-of-the-art research instruments and methodologies.
The research program in the department trains Ph.D. and M.D. / Ph.D. students for independent research careers. Students are key participants in our research endeavors and present their research at national meetings, conferences, and symposia.