I’m a Postdoctoral Research Fellow at the Department of Pharmacology, University of Michigan. My main research interests include in the area of protein misfolding and Neurodegenerative diseases, G-protein/GPCR signaling. Currently, I am working on a project that aims at elucidating the orthosteric binding site on Adhesion G-protein coupled receptor using the synthetic tethered agonist peptides.

I’m a third -year graduate student at the Department of Pharmacology, University of Michigan. My main research interests include the activation mechanisms, signaling, and physiology of adhesion G protein-coupled receptors (AGPCRs). Currently, I am working on a large-scale high throughput screen for small molecule activators and inhibitors of the AGPCR ADGRG1, which we’ve recently discovered is a critical force-sensing receptor for platelet activation during hemostasis (blood clotting). My screening work is important because there are very few reported ligands for AGPCRs. As such, we know little about how these receptors work in our bodies. The development of novel, small-molecule agonists and antagonists will help expand our pharmacological toolbox for studying these receptors and may even lead to the development of unprecedented AGPCR-targeted drugs.

I’m a third-year Post-Doctoral student at the Department of Pharmacology, University of Michigan. My main research interests focus on the activation of AGPCRs. Currently, I am working on elucidating the role of GPR56, an AGPCR, in hemostatic functions. This work not only provides the fundamental mechanism of AGPCR activation but also unveils an unidentified platelet target as well as other implications in hemostatic disorders.

Research funding awards:

Michigan Life Sciences Fellows 2018

NIH NRSA F32 2019

I’m a fourth-year biochemistry and pure mathematics undergraduate student at the Department of Pharmacology, University of Michigan. My main research interests include protein expression, folding, and purification. Currently, I am working on a project that improves existing heterotrimeric G protein purification methods using the chaperone activity of Ric-8 proteins. I have also worked on using in vitro phosphorylation reactions to make purification of active Ric-8 proteins easier. These methods allow us to isolate and characterize historically difficult-to-purify G proteins while investigating G protein biosynthesis and signaling.

I’m a second-year graduate student at the Department of Pharmacology, University of Michigan. My main research interests include the regulation of Ric-8 on G protein α subunits. Currently, I am working on projects that elucidate how Ric-8A is regulated by its C-terminal phosphorylation and how Ric-8s select their specific Gα subunits. These works are important in a biomedical research setting because they support the inhibitor strategy of targeting Ric-8 to attenuate diseases mechanism involving abnormal G protein signaling.

In May 2020, I passed the preliminary examination for advancement to doctoral candidacy in Pharmacology.

I’m a Research Laboratory Technician Associate in Dr. Greg Tall’s lab in the Department of Pharmacology. My main research interests are focused on aspects of cellular signaling, most recently on the signaling of G-protein coupled receptors (GPCRs). Currently, I am involved in a variety of projects in the Tall Lab, including work on the functioning and regulation of Adhesion GPCRs (AGPCRs) and Ric-8 proteins. This work is important in a clinical/biomedical research setting because greater understanding of AGPCRs and Ric-8 proteins could open the door to the possibility of the development of novel therapeutics.

I’m an Ann Arbor Pioneer High School Junior volunteer in Dr. Greg Tall’s Lab at the Dept. of Pharmacology, University of Michigan. My main research interests are cell signaling and transduction. Currently, I’m working on GPR97, an adhesion GPCR related to GPR56 of the ADGR’G’s, and investigating how its function compares to that of GPR56.