Research Interests
The pharmacology of salivary gland secretion.
Receptor function, signal transduction are major interests. Specific areas of research include the link between muscarinic receptors and the MAP kinase pathway and interaction of muscarinic pathways with adrenergic signaling pathways in salivary glands. The role of P2 nucleotide receptors and ecto-ATPase in salivary gland function is also an interest. A further interest is the role of Na+K+-ATPase in gland function.
The lab uses drug binding as well as functional assays to characterize the effects of drugs and their receptors on secretion. Important questions include:
1) What are the components of the signaling pathways invoked by muscarinic receptor agonists when secretion is stimulated?
2) Are distinct signaling pathways involved when these drugs stimulate different components of secretion?
3) Do the signaling pathways for the different autonomic agonists interact and how?
4) How do nucleotides affect signaling by muscarinic agonists?
Investigating these aspects of secretion is aimed at an understanding of salivary function, and the beneficial as well as detrimental effects of drugs on salivary gland dynamics.
