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Welcome to the Scarlata Lab


 

Our lab is focused on exciting new research regarding how cells communicate with their surroundings and the outside world.

In particular, we are interested in how certain hormones and neurotransmitters can activate a family of organic molecules known as G proteins (guanine nucleotide-binding proteins), which are involved in transmitting signals from various stimuli from the exterior to the interior of cells. In turn this communication system can cause cells to move, divide, and change structure.

Using biophysical methods, we can observe how cells respond to different stimulating agents as well as attempt to control these responses. G proteins help control how cells move, divide, and change structure; the signaling pathways they mediate are integral to a wide array of biological functions, including sensory perception, the regulation of the heart, nervous system, and reproduction, and the development of cancer.