Gilbert C. White Gilbert C. White Professor M.D., University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Molecular mechanisms of signal transduction in human platelets Highly specialized pathways exist for transducing extracellular signals to response mechanisms inside cells. These pathways not only provide different cell types with their unique way of responding to various stimuli, but they determine the characteristics of the cell response. The focus of this laboratory is on th emolecular mechanisms of signal transduction in human platelets, an explosively activatable cell which forms an excellent model for studying signal transduction.
Studies are currently in progress in three related areas.
First, in order to better understand the nature of signal generation at the cell surface, the function domains of integrin receptors on the platelet surface are being structurally mapped using in vitro mutagenesis. Second, the interaction of integrins with signaling pathways inside the cell is being examined. The role of low molecular weight GTP binding proteins in the ras superfamily in platelet activation is one focus. This laboratory was the first to show that members of this family associate with the cellular cytoskeleton during cell activation. Finally, the laboratory is interested in the role of cAMP as an inhibitor of signal transduction in platelets.