Cell Signaling & Environmental Stress

Catalog description

In the last few years, we have gained extensive knowledge of how cell surface receptors transmit signals to the nucleus, thereby controlling the expression of genetic programs involved in many cellular processes, including normal and aberrant cell growth. Signaling motifs (e.g., nuclear transcription receptors, kinase/phosphatase cascades, G-coupled protein receptors, etc.) are components of signaling webs, which are targets of disruption by environmental pollutants. This course covers various signal transduction pathways such as cytokine signaling and signal transduction to the nucleus by mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK). Some of the known detailed mechanisms, such as regulation of MAPK by phosphatases (removal of phosphorylation) and dual phosphorylation of MAPK on the relevant threonine and tyrosine leading to the downstream activator protein-1 (AP-1) activation, are discussed. The course further illustrates that alteration of the pathways by environmental pollutants, such as transition metals and airborne particles, may be implicated in pathological processes, cancer, inflammation, and chronic obstructive pulmonary diseases. Students gain a basic understanding of principles emerging in the signaling field and how they serve as guiding tools for students engaged in basic, clinical, and translational medical research.