Research Interests: Bacterial pathogenesis and host immune responses to respiratory bacteria.

Research Interests: Molecular mechanisms of retrovirus entry and infection; Design and development of viral vectors for anti-cancer human gene therapy.

Research Interests: Characterization of the interaction between pathogenic Chlamydial species and their hosts during acute and persistent disease.

Research Interests: Research is focused on the developmental regulation of cytokine gene expression within T cells with a particular focus on the TH2 locus encoding interleukins 4, 13 and 5 – key orchestrators of the immune response.

Research Interests: Cell and molecular biology of Chlamydia pathogenesis.

Research Interests: JNK and p38 MAP kinase (MAPK) pathway in innate and adaptive immunity; Sphingosine 1-phosphate (S1P) pathway in T cell trafficking and immune responses; molecular mechanisms of immune-mediated disorders including infectious and autoimmune diseases.

Research Interests: Eukaryotic genome-wide transcription regulatory networks and cell biology of transcriptional regulation.

Research Interests: Regulation of the endocytosis and intracellular trafficking of membrane transporters, and the role of the cytoskeleton in these processes.

Research Interests: Genetic disorders of B cell development in the human.

Research Interests: Computational methods for microarray data analysis and gene network modeling.

Research Interests: Mechanism of cancer invasion and metastasis; Host-tumor cell-cell interactions; Biomarkers of invasion and metastatic spread of cancer cells.

Research Interests: Molecular pathogenesis of group A streptococcal infections; Development and design of group A streptococcal vaccines.

Research Interests:DNA replication is a fundamental process for all cells to duplicate the genetic material prior to division. We are investigating the molecular details of how helicase enzymes unwind double-stranded DNA during its replication by using X-ray crystallography and biochemical experiments.

Research Interests: Adipokine release by adipose tissue from obese humans.

Research Interests: Understanding the mechanisms by which alveolar macrophage activation and polarization contributes to lung pathology during chronic hypersensitivity pneumonitis.

Research Interests: Regulation of T-cell responses in and immunotherapy for autoimmune diseases.

Research Interests: Oral vaccines based in commensal bacteria for prevention and treatment of microbial and allergen induced diseases. Reservoir targeted vaccine for the control of Lyme borreliosis.

Research Interests: Role of the Y-box binding protein, YB-1, in cell proliferation.

Research Interests: Activation of innate immune system by lipoteichoic acid; Mechanisms of bacterial adhesion to human mucosal cells.

Research Interests: Biosynthesis of proteins in the secretory pathway; Signal transduction pathways that are activated by cellular stress.

Research Interests: Mechanism of eukaryotic transcriptional regulation.

Research Interests: Mechanism of transcription activation by the bacteriophage Mu Mor/C family of transcription activators.

Research Interests: HIV and respiratory virus vaccine development.

Research Interests: Roles of phospholipid synthesis in cellular functions; Regulation of coenzyme A as a determinant of metabolic switching.

Research Interests: The molecular basis of cell adhesion and cell growth facilitated by cell surface integrins and tetraspanins

Research Interests: Role of hyperglycemia on oxidative stress and signal transduction in T lymphocytes.

Research Interests: Virus-host cell interactions during infections of hepatitis C virus and related viruses; innate immune signaling mechanisms to viral infections.

Research Interests: Cellular and molecular mechanisms for autoimmunity to DNA in natural and transgenic mouse models for human systemic lupus erythematosus; Function of anti-DNA autoantibodies in glomerular pathogenesis in human lupus; Immune responses to HCV in chronic hepatitis C infection.

Research Interests: Mechanisms and virulence factors underlying the interaction between respiratory viruses and bacteria. Current research is focusing on influenza viruses, Streptococcus pneumoniae and staphylococcus.

Research Interests: Our research is focused on the molecular and cellular regulation of T cells during infectious disease and autoimmune disease.

Research Interests: Development of vectors for delivery of cytokine-assisted vaccines focusing on the use of replication-defective vesicular stomatitis virus as a delivery vector for cytokine-adjuvant(s) in combination with either exogenous or virus-encoded candidate immunogens.

Research Interests: Biophysical and functional characterization of the role of multiple degrons in substrate recognition by ubiquitin ligases; the role of ‘fuzzy’ complexes in signal transduction and ubiquitination.

Research Interests: Regulation of the innate immune response.

Research Interests: Bioinformatics and evolution of the cytochrome P450 superfamily; Molecular history of eukaryotic life.

Research Interests: Bone formation, calcification and mechanisms to regulate bone mass.

Research Interests: Role of matrix metalloproteinases in glioma and arthritis; Targeting glioma by anti-MMP inhibitors.

Research Interests: Molecular analysis of autoantibody structure and characterization of autoantigens that elicit autoimmune responses.

Research Interests: Control points in fatty acid biosynthesis; Regulation of membrane phospholipid metabolism; Small molecule therapeutics.

Research Interests: Antifungal action and resistance in the pathogenic fungi Candida albicans and Candida glabrata; Host innate immune response to Candida albicans and Candida glabrata.

Research Interests: Role of the MHC class II molecules, T cells, and cytokines in susceptibility to autoimmune arthritis.

Research Interests: Molecular mechanisms of paramyxovirus entry and pathogenesis; development of vaccines against paramyxovirus infection; structure-based design of inhibitors against paramyxovirus replication.

Research Interests: Genetic analysis of herpes virus entry of cells; glycovirology.

Research Interests: Molecular basis for posttranslational modification by ubiquitin and ubiquitin-like proteins.

Research Interests: Pathogenesis of RNA viruses; specifically influenza and astroviruses. We are interested in the viral-host interactions at the epithelial and innate immune cell level. Our studies encompass a wide range of disciplines including virology, cell biology, and molecular biology. A new area of study in the laboratory is the impact of obesity on influenza virus pathogenesis and therapeutic strategies. We also have several on-going surveillance projects that would expose interested students to virology at the public health interface.

Research Interests: Molecular determinants of D2 Dopamine Receptor/G protein specificity.

Research Interests: Molecular mechanisms of pneumococcal invasion using in vivo and in vitro models of pneumonia, sepsis, and meningitis.

Research Interests: TCR:CD3 cell biology, signal transduction and function; Regulation of T cell function and homeostasis; T cell specificity and function in type 1 diabetes.

Research Interests: Reverse genetics technologies to improve influenza vaccines, as well as to understand the pathogenesis of, and immune response to, influenza viruses

Research Interests: The origin and control of pandemic influenza viruses.

Research Interests: Structural studies by X-ray crystallography on biological macromolecules with emphasis on fatty acid synthesis, protein-DNA and protein-RNA interactions, and structure-assisted drug design.

Research Interests: Molecular basis of negative-strand virus entry, replication, and assembly; Development of cell-specific cytolytic and oncolytic vectors; Molecular mechanisms of viral oncolysis with emphasis on glioblastoma multiformae.

Research Interests: Research focuses on identifying new signaling components in host pattern recognition Eeceptor and signaling pathways that amplify or attenuate pro-inflammatory responses during the course of infection and autoimmue process.

Research Interests: Structural biology of the Wnt signaling pathway; Molecular basis of focal adhesion kinase.