Kathleen M. Mulder, Ph.D.
Telephone: 717-531-6789
E-mail: kmm15@psu.edu
We have identified the TGFβ receptor-interacting protein km23-1/dynlrb1, which plays an important role in TGFβ signal transduction, as well as in dynein-mediated intracellular transport of signaling cargoes to specialized locales. km23-1 also functions as a critical platform for the assembly of small GTPases (such as Ras, Rabs) underlying its critical roles in cell signaling, motility, polarity, intracellular transport, cytoskeletal dynamics, and TGFβ receptor signaling. We are also investigating mechanisms of signaling and trafficking involving actin cytoskeleton, Ras/Ras-like GTPases, motor proteins, dynein, stem cells, growth factors, endosomes, Golgi, exosomes, autophagy, and amyloid protein processing. Additional studies address how these events are altered in neurodegenerative diseases, viruses, and cancer. The overall focus of the Mulder Lab is the identification of novel signal transduction-based therapeutics for human pathologies such as cancer, Alzheimer’s disease, and SARS-CoV-2.