Exciting opportunities in the Macara laboratory for recent Ph.D. students who are interested in cancer research and epithelial cell biology. We have projects on embryonic stem cells, mammary and skin stem cells, using high-end microscopy. We also have projects involving genome-wide CRISPR screens, scRNAseq, and single molecule imaging in live cells.
| Cell and Developmental Biology | |
The Macara laboratory is excited by fundamental questions about epithelial homeostasis and cancer initiation. Most human cancers arise from epithelial tissues. We use mouse mammary gland and skin, and human organoids, as model systems (Dev Cell 2020). Transgenic mice provide powerful tools to probe stem cell function, breast cancer initiation mechanisms, and responses to injury. We develop new genome-wide CRISPR screens to identify novel genes involved in epithelial homeostasis (eLife 2020) and apical-basal polarity. We also endogenously tag proteins involved in epithelial cell polarity and polarized vesicle transport, using CRISPR gene-editing, so as to track these proteins with single molecule sensitivity. We employ multi-channel TIRFM and near-TIRF microscopy, which provides unprecedented spatial and temporal resolution of protein complex dynamics (Nature Commun 2018). Finally, we are creating new mouse models of disease, using CRISPR technology to introduce fluorescent tags into endogenous alleles, and point mutations in a subunit of the exocyst, that correspond to mutations found in a rare human neurological disease (JEM 2020).We are seeking adventurous postdocs with interests in any of these areas of epithelial biology. |
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Please contact Ian Macara at ian.g.macara@vanderbilt.edu if you are interested in exploring the possibility of postdoctoral training. |
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| Ian Macara : ian.g.macara@Vanderbilt.Edu : (615) 875-5565 |
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| 2021-04-27 16:28:13 |