We are broadly interested in the post-transcriptional regulation of eukaryotic gene expression. Alterations in components of gene expression pathways, such as pre-mRNA splicing by the spliceosome, have been shown to play important roles in human disease development. For example, mutations in core splicing factor proteins have recently been found in the blood cells of patients with several types of leukemia and more broadly with a variety of cancers such as myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS). Work in the lab uses the model system fission yeast to understand how specific kinases regulate pre-mRNA splicing under a variety of environmental conditions and with a variety of pre-mRNA sequences. This research will expand current knowledge of how a cell regulates components of the spliceosome to ensure accurate intron removal.
