BIOLOGY OF MEMBRANE TRAFFICKING, SIGNALING AND DEVELOPMENT
Our lab investigates fundamental questions concerning the role of membrane trafficking in signal transduction during organ development and homeostasis. In particular, we focus on the function of key trafficking regulators, such as Endosomal Sorting Required for Transport (ESCRT) proteins, vacuolar-H+ ATPase (V-ATPase) components and the Soluble NSF Attachment Protein Receptors (SNAREs). We currently study how these factors act in endocytosis, autophagy, lysosomal biogenesis and cell division in human cells and in vivo, using the fruit fly Drosophila melanogaster as an animal model. Our work is useful to characterize genes and mechanisms associated to the development of tumors, congenital rare diseases and neurodegeneration.