In this post-genomic era, physiology is uniquely poised at the nexus between molecular function and whole animal integration with the goal of understanding how the functions of thousands of encoded proteins serve to bring about the highly coordinated behavior of cells and tissues underlying physiological functions in animals and how their dysfunction may lead to disease. Research and graduate training in the Department of Molecular & Integrative Physiology is focused on understanding the regulation and function of gene products at multiple levels of biological organization, from molecules and macromolecular complexes to cells, tissues, and whole organisms. With the tools of molecular genetics and modern systems biology, physiologists are at the forefront of dramatic advances currently occurring in life and biomedical sciences. Advanced training in molecular and integrative physiology will provide the necessary foundation to prepare for a career in this exciting area of functional biology.
Milan K. Bagchi, Head
Lysosome-mediated autophagy is essential for cellular survival by recycling cytoplasmic components under nutrient-deprived conditions and removing damaged organelles in cells, but must be suppressed in nutrient-rich conditions to prevent unnecessary breakdown of cellular components. Molecular and Integrative Physiology Professor Jongsook Kemper, postdoctoral fellow Sangwon Byun (leading author of the study), research scientist Young Kim, and colleagues identified a new regulatory pathway that epigenetically represses autophagy upon feeding.
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Epilepsy is a medical condition characterized by spontaneous seizures due to hyperexcitability of brain neurons. Assistant Professor Nien-Pei Tsai, graduate student Jiuhe Zhu and colleagues uncovered that an insufficient function or mutations of a novel epilepsy-associated gene Nedd4-2 leads to neuronal hyperexcitability caused by an uncontrolled level of a neurotransmitter receptor named AMPA receptor. These findings provide critical information to the development of therapies for epilepsy patients who carry mutations of Nedd4-2.
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Janelle Mapes won Second Place, and Jessica Saw was one of the finalists.
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