Phone: (509)-313-6687 Fax: (509)-313-5804 eMail:
Office#: HU 205
My lab studies the process of cell adhesion and the cytoskeletal structures required for cell-cell and cell-substrate interactions. These types of interactions are important for normal cell function and are dramatically altered when cells are transformed from a normal to a cancerous state. Because Rho-GTPases are molecules that are known to be important in regulating cytoskeletal structures, we expect their activity to be altered during the process of cancer development. We are therefore comparing the activity of Rho-GTPases in normal, pre-cancerous, and cancerous tissue isolated from the intestines of mice. We are also describing the effect of anti-tumor drugs on microtubule and microfilament cytoskeletal structures in cultured epithelial cells, and looking for changes in Rho-GTPase activity in the presence of these drugs. These studies should offer some insight into how cell adhesion is altered during cancer formation and the mechanism by which anti-tumor drugs interfere with cancer development. Students who are interested in working in my lab should have completed BIOL 201 (Cellular Biology).
Education
B.S. Biology, Minor Chemistry (December, 1987) Gonzaga University, Spokane,Washington, Summa Cum Laude, Alpha Sigma Nu
Ph.D. Biology (August, 1993) University of Utah, Salt Lake City, Utah, Dr. Mary C. Beckerle, Thesis Adviso
Weyant, M.J., A.M. Carothers, M.E. Bertagnolli and M.M. Bertagnolli (2000) "Colon cancer chemopreventive drugs modulate integrin-mediated
signaling pathways." Clinical Cancer Research 6: 949-956.
Bertagnolli, M.E., *L.A. Hudson and *G.Y. Stetsenko (1999) "Selective association of the tyrosine kinases Src, Fyn and Lyn with integrin-rich actin cytoskeletons of activated, nonaggregated platelets." Biochemical and Biophysical Research Communications 260: 790- 798.
Bertagnolli, M.E. and M.C. Beckerle (1994) "Regulated membrane-cytoskeleton linkages in platelets." Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences 714: 88-100.
Bertagnolli, M.E., S.J. Locke, M.E. Hensler, P.F. Bray and M.C. Beckerle (1993) "Talin distribution and phosphorylation in thrombin-activated platelets." Journal of Cell Science 106: 1189-1199.
Bertagnolli, M.E. (1993) "Membrane-cytoskeleton interactions in human blood platelets." Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Utah.
Bertagnolli, M.E. and M.C. Beckerle (1993) "Evidence for the selective association of a subpopulation of GPIIb-IIIa with the actin cytoskeleton of thrombin- activated platelets." Journal of Cell Biology 121: 1329-1342.
Beckerle, M.C., D.E. Miller, M.E. Bertagnolli and S.J. Locke (1989) "Activation dependent redistribution of the adhesion plaque protein, talin, in intact human platelets." Journal of Cell Biology 109: 3333-33
My lab studies the process of cell adhesion and the cytoskeletal structures required for cell-cell and cell-substrate interactions. These types of interactions are important for normal cell function and are dramatically altered when cells are transformed from a normal to a cancerous state. Because Rho-GTPases are molecules that are known to be important in regulating cytoskeletal structures, we expect their activity to be altered during the process of cancer development. We are therefore comparing the activity of Rho-GTPases in normal, pre-cancerous, and cancerous tissue isolated from the intestines of mice. We are also describing the effect of anti-tumor drugs on microtubule and microfilament cytoskeletal structures in cultured epithelial cells, and looking for changes in Rho-GTPase activity in the presence of these drugs. These studies should offer some insight into how cell adhesion is altered during cancer formation and the mechanism by which anti-tumor drugs interfere with cancer development. Students who are interested in working in my lab should have completed