The primary focus of my lab is to understand the molecular mechanisms that determine the longevity of an organism. The main interests of the lab are:

·        Diet-gene interactions that regulate longevity

·        Regulation of the Insulin-IGF-1 signaling pathway

·        Regulation of oogenesis and reproductive aging by nutrient-sensing pathways

·        The biology of Dietary restriction

·        Understanding molecular link between aging and innate immune pathways

·        Screening for novel compounds that extend longevity

We use a combination of molecular biology, genomics, Next Generation sequencing and molecular genetics approaches in the lab. Caenorhabditis elegans is the system of choice for our studies due to its short and reproducible life span, low maintenance cost, amenability to high throughput molecular techniques as well as ease of genetic manipulation. Interestingly, the molecular makeup of the innate immune response pathways and those that regulate longevity are strikingly similar between vertebrates and invertebrates. Such conservations are a key to extrapolating the results obtained in our model system and validating them in mammals.