Research Categories - Disease Mechanisms

Many HMS laboratories are exploring biological mechanisms of disease processes, applying sophisticated technologies to mechanistic and therapeutic studies. These investigations focus on a wide range of disease entities, from prevalent afflictions such as cancer, to viral diseases of epidemic proportions such as AIDS, to uncommon genetic diseases.

Related Investigators

  1. Bruce Bean, PhD

    Neuronal electrical signaling, ion channels, pacemaking, and neuropharmacology

    Investigate the electrical firing and physiology of neuronal ion channels

  2. John Blenis, PhD

    Signal transduction: nutrient and energy sensing; disease; mTOR; PI3-kinase; Ras

    Explore the diverse yet overlapping intracellular transmission signals propagated by cell surface receptors that respond to extracellular growth factors, environmental conditions, and other ...

  3. Jon Clardy, PhD

    Isolation and characterization of small molecule natural products; high-throughput screening for novel therapeutics

    Discovering small molecule, natural products and their biology; high throughput screening for small molecule chemicals that interfere with microbial and mammalian cell processes.  

  4. Martin Dorf, PhD

    Molecular signaling in inflammation: TNF; cytokine; autoimmune disease; T-cell

    Investigate the biochemical signaling perturbations elicited by the pro-inflammatory cytokine TNF that serve to modulate the activation of NF-кB, with a focus on TNF receptor-associated factor ...

  5. Amitinder Kaur, MD

    AIDS pathogenesis and CMV opportunistic infection: SIV; vaccine; AIDS resistance

    AIDS modeling in non-human primates; reactivation of latent CMV in HIV-infected individuals; innate resistance to SIV-related disease progression.  

  6. Samara Reck-Peterson, PhD

    Intracellular cargo movement: the role of molecular motors

    Explore the role of dynein in molecular cargo transport

  7. James Rowlett, PhD

    Anxiety, addiction, cognition, and sleep: pharmacotherapy, GABA receptor

    Investigate the neuropharmacological basis of psychiatric disease and addiction, employing behavioral methodologies and translational approaches.  Primary areas of research include anxiety, ...

  8. Arlene Sharpe, MD, PhD

    T-cell regulation and disease: chronic viral infection; autoimmunity, tumor immunotherapy, peripheral tolerance

    T cell co-stimulation and its immunoregulatory role in controlling the balance between T cell activation and tolerance.  

  9. Michael Starnbach, PhD

    Bacterial infection and acquired immunity

    T-cell response to bacterial infection, including sexually transmitted chlamydia disease

  10. Wei-Dong Yao, PhD

    Dopamine signaling; synaptic plasticity; neurobiology of neuropsychiatric and neurodegenerative disorders