She has received a one-year Pilot Award to study mTORC1 and S6K1 signaling in LAM. Dr. Holz proposes that S6K1 may be an attractive target for LAM treatment since it is an important regulator of cell growth, proliferation and autophagy. She hypothesizes that inhibiting specific components of S6K1 signaling downstream of the mTORC1 pathway may prove to be a more effective and less toxic treatment than current rapalog therapies. She also will study the connections between the S6K1 and estrogen functions in LAM cells as a basis to develop combination therapy approaches for treatment.