Christian Rocheleau
- Structural Biology, Cellular Imaging
- Developmental Biology, Stem Cells and Aging
- Cell Signaling, Cell/Environment Interactions and Extracellular Matrix
- Cytoskeleton and Intracellular Trafficking
Our lab uses the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans to study cell signaling and vesicle trafficking and how they intersect. C. elegans provides an in vivo genetic system to identify and characterize novel regulators of these fundamental cellular processes. The translucent body and invariant cell lineage of C. elegans allows microscopic analysis at single cell resolution in live animals. We are currently studying 1) the mechanisms that regulate the TBC-2 Rab GTPase Activating Protein during early to late endosome maturation 2) the trafficking pathways and mechanisms that regulate Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor localization and signaling in epithelial cells and 3) growth factor receptor signaling from endosomes. The high conservation of genes between humans and C. elegans mean that discoveries made in this tiny worm are often relevant to human biology and disease.
Keywords: C. elegans, cell signaling, vesicle trafficking