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Sidney Pestka
Professor
UMDNJ-RWJMS
Molecular Genetics & Microbiology
675 Hoes Lane
Piscataway. NJ 08854-5635
(732) 235-4567
FAX - 5223
pestka@umdnj.edu |
Receptors. signal transduction. interferons and cytokines. protein expression
Cell surface receptors for cytokines and growth factors provide
the initial ligand-receptor interactions that begin the cascade of signal
transduction events that lead to specific gene expression. The panoply of these
components and events are a major focus of this laboratory. Discovery of the
components of these receptors and signal pathways requires a broad series of
approaches that span many disciplines: molecular biology. microbiology. biochemistry. cell biology and genetics. The use of reverse genetics is used to
delineate the specific sites of the functional elements. The combination of
molecular biology and genetics proves to be an enormously powerful tool to
delineate all these events. The successful use of these procedures will lead to
an integral understanding of the detailed molecular events that lead from the
cell surface to gene expression. the normal control of these processes in
differentiation and development. and the aberration of these processes in
diseases such as cancer. The discovery of a novel protein methyltransferase
resulted from our studies and is continuing in several directions to provide a
unique perspective in these areas.
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