Faculty List (pdf)
Track Handbook (pdf)
Track Guidelines (pdf)
The CMB Track is designed for graduate students with a broad interest in investigating how prokaryotic and eukaryotic cells function as a living unit, respond to external cues, communicate with other cells, and contribute to the homeostatic and pathological processes in complex systems.
The track has a strong emphasis in interdisciplinary approaches to graduate education and training to provide students with a broad foundation for future career development in more specialized areas of biomedical research and education. Students will be exposed to molecular, genetic, genomic, proteomic, structural and/or whole organism research approaches.
The research interests of the faculty include signal transduction, cell cycle, DNA repair, apoptosis, cell-cell communication, cell migration, stem cell biology, regulation of gene expression, exo-/endo-cytosis, cytoskeleton, protein structure and complex assembly, post-translational modification, and protein degradation, as these processes relate to various human health issues such as aging, cancer, immune surveillance, infectious disease, neural, metabolic, and hereditary disorders, and development.
Linda DeGraffenried, Ph.D., Department of Medicine
Peter J. Hornsby, Ph.D., Department of Physiology
John R. McCarrey, Ph.D., Department of Biological Sciences
ASMIS, Reto, Biochemistry - Role of thiol oxidative stress in macrophage dysfunction associated with cardiovascular disease, inflammation and impaired wound healing.
BAI, Yidong, Cellular and Structural Biology - mitochondrial, respiratory chain, complex assembly,
turnover, copy number control.
BERTON, Michael T., Microbiology - focus is on the regulation of host immune responses by host cell signaling pathways.
BISHOP, Alex, Children's Cancer Research Institute - Genomic instability, DNA repair, homologous recombination, cell signaling, cancer and aging.
BOSE, Santanu, Microbiology - Anti-viral signaling against respiratory RNA virus
BRENNER, Robert, Physiology - The focus of my studies have been the large conductance (BK-type) calcium-activated potassium channels. BK channels are gated to open by both micromolar calcium concentrations and voltage.
CHATTERJEE, Bandana, Molecular Medicine - Gene regulation; nuclear receptors; cancer cell biology; environmental carcinogenesis; transgenic/knock out mice; live cell microscopy.
CLARK, Robert, Medicine - Neutrophil phagocytosis, microbial killing and tissue injury, gene regulation, cell signaling, reactive oxygen species.
DE GRAFFENRIED, Linda, Medicine - Signal transduction, tumorigenesis, molecular therapeutics.
DONG, Lily, Cellular and Structural Biology - Adiponectin signaling in Obese and Diabetes.
DUBE, Peter, Microbiology - Endocytosis, bacteria/macrophage interacition.
EATON, Benjamin A., Physiology - synaptic growth, stability, and function in Drosophila.
GAO, Shou-jiang, Greehey Children's Cancer Research Institute - Viral oncogenesis, inflammation, angiogenesis, cancer invasion, microRNA, and herpesvirus entry, latency and reactivation.
GHOSH, Rita, Urology - The overall aim of my program is to exploit reversible and irreversible changes in cancer cells using naturally occurring compounds for prevention and or treatment.
GHOSH-Choudhury, Nandini, Pathology - Gene expression, growth factor, signal transduction, kinase, breast cancer, metastasis, transgenic models, knockout mice, reactive oxygen species.
HINCK, Andrews, Biochemistry - Solution NMR spectroscopy of proteins and nucleic acids; transforming growth factor b and its interaction with the ligand binding domain of the TGF-b type I and type II receptors; protein-RNA interactions.
HORNSBY, Peter, Physiology - cell transplantation, cellular aging.
HU, Yanfen, Molecular Medicine - Breast cancer, gene expression and regulation.
IZUMI, Kenneth M., Microbiology - Epstein Barr virus on cogenicity, LMP1 signal transduction.
JIANG, Jean, Biochemistry - Intercellular and intracellular signaling, amino acid transport.
KADOSH, David, Microbiology - Cell morphology, filamentous growth, fungal pathogenesis, gene regulation, genomics.
KRAIG, Ellen, Cellular and Structural Biology - Effects of aging and infection on immunity and autoimmunity.
KUMAR, A. Pratap, Urology - Molecular targets, cancer therapy.
LAFER, Eileen, Biochemistry - Focused on dissecting the biochemical mechanisms that underlie clathrin coated vesicle assembly and uncoating. We utilize a wide range of techniques including solution biochemistry, electrophysiology and X-ray crystallography to gain insight into fundamental biological processes.
LARSEN, Pamela, Cellular and Structural Biology - The focus of the laboratory is on understanding the biological mechanisms for the efficient life maintenance, in development and adulthood in C. elegans. It is generally believed that genetic and environmental manipulations result in life span extension by controlling metabolism and resistance to stress. We are interested in understanding the mechanisms of longevity by both means.
LECHLEITER, James D., Cellular and Structural Biology - Molecular and cellular mechanisms of protection during ischemic stress, acute brain injury and aging.
LEE, John, Biochemistry - The primary focus of the laboratory is elucidation of the molecular basis of the action of Osteogenic Protein-1 (OP-1), which is a member of the bone morphogenetic protein (BMP) family. BMPs are members of the TGF-? superfamily. OP-1 induces bone and cartilage formation in vivo and induces both chondroblastic and osteoblastic cell differentiation of osteoprogenitor cells in vitro.
LI, Rong, Molecular Medicine - Breast cancer, BRCA1, hormone-dependent gene regulation, obesity, adipose tissue, tumor microenvironment.
LI, Senlin, Pharmacology - stem cell/gene therapy, neurodegenerative diseases, Parkinson's disease, atherosclerosis, hematopoietic stem cell, aging, rejuvenation.
LIU, Feng, Pharmacology - Interest lies in studying the insulin signal transduction pathway, which is activated when the hormone insulin binds to its cell surface receptors, resulting in a cascade of biochemical reactions that culminates in regulation of metabolic processes such as glucose uptake and glycogen synthesis.
LU, XIN-Yun, Pharmacology - Neurobiology of stress-related disorders, Depression andobesity, Leptin signaling in the central nervous system.
LUDUENA, Richard, Biochemistry - Structure of tubulin; biochemistry of microtubules; tubulin isotypes, mechanism of action of anti-tumor drugs.
MAFFI, Shivani, Medicine/Infectious Disease - Neurobiology, mitochondria, microscopy, alcohol, neonatology.
MCCARREY, John R., UTSA Department of Biology - Cellular biology; cellular development and differentiation.
MCEWEN, Donald, Children's Cancer and Research Institute - apoptosis, development, cell signaling, planar cell polarity, oncogenesis.
MORGAN, William, Cellular and Structural Biology - Neurodegeneration, aging, gene expression, transgenic models.
NASKI, Michael, Pathology - skeletal development, bone and cartilage, osteoblast and chondrocyte, Wnt signaling, Runx2, FGF and FGF receptors.
NAYLOR, Sue, Cellular and Structural Biology - microRNA, cell interaction, cancer cells.
NICHOLSON, Bruce, Biochemistry - Cell communication; gap junction channel structure, permeability and gating; mechanisms of tumor suppression; intercellular communication and cell migration.
OSMULSKI, Pawel A., Molecular Medicine - proteolysis, ubiquitin proteasome pathway, protein folding and assembly.
OYAJOBI, Babatunde (KAY), Cellular and Structural Biology - skeletal biology, cancer-induced bone diseases, multiple myeloma, ubiquitin-proteasome pathway, non-invasive small animal imaging.
PENALVA, Luiz O., Greehey Children's Cancer Research Institute - Post-transcriptional regulation and RNA binding proteins.
PEREIRA-SMITH, Olivia, Cellular and Structural Biology - cell senescence, chromatin remodeling, transcriptional regulation, tumor suppression.
RAN, Qitao, Cellular and Structural Biology - oxdative damage, antioxidant defense, aging, Alzheimer's, transgenic mice, apoptosis.
RANJAN, Ravi, Pharmacology - Genetic dissection of synaptic plasticity and aging. Genetic dissection of Ca2+-regulated neurotransmitter release.
RAO, Hai, Molecular Medicine - ubiquitin, regulated proteolysis, protein quality control, prion diseases.
RAO, Manjeet, Greehey Children's Cancer Research Institute - Pediatric cancers, microRNA, RNAi, transcription.
REBEL, Vivienne, Greehey Children's Cancer Research Institute - Stem cell regulation, transcriptional regulatory networks, CBP, p300.
SAIKUMAR, Pothana, Pathology - Cell injury, cell death, oncogenes.
SUN, Luzhe, Cellular and Structural Biology - Cancer biology, Signal transduction, Cell cycle, Cell senescence, Experimental therapeutics.
TEKMAL, Rajeshwar, Ob-GYN - growth factor/hormone crosstalk, signal transduction, steroid hormone coactivation.
TONEY, Glenn M., Physiology - Neurotransmitters, neuropeptides, membrane channels, neuronal osmosensation.
TROYER, Dean A., Pathology - Urologic cancer; translational research.
VADLAMUDI, Ratna K., Ob-GYN - neclear receptors, coregulators, hormone, growth factor, chromatin regulation, epigenetics, cytoskeleton signaling, kinases, breast cancer.
WALTER, Chris, Cellular and Structural Biology - DNA repair, mutagenesis, mitochondria, transgenic mice, aging, spermatogenic cells.
YEW, P. Renee, Molecular Medicine - Vertebrate cell cycle regulation, DNA replication initiation, Ubiquitin-mediated proteolysis and signaling, Tumor suppressor function.
ZHONG, Guangming, Microbiology - Microbial manipulation of mammalian cell apoptosis and other signaling pathways, Infection and Immunity, Vaccine.