Judging simply by the abundance of protein kinase and protein phosphatase genes, protein phosphorylation is a very important regulatory mechanism. Our current work focuses on the role of these enzymes in eukaryotic signaling pathways and their possible implications in human diseases.
Signal transduction pathways in mammalian cells function through the coordinated activation, or inactivation of protein kinases and phosphatases localized in the cell membrane, cytoplasm or nucleus. Many human diseases result from deregulation of signal transduction pathways; for example, the proliferation signal pathways of cancer cells are permanently upregulated following mutation of key regulatory enzymes.
Our current research activities focus on targeting novel kinases involved in the development and progression of glioblastoma, ovarian cancer and lymphoma with the ultimate aim of finding new personalized therapeutic strategies.