BMS 290 -  Human Physiology
BMS 391 -  Laboratory in Human Physiology

Postdoctoral Fellow, Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center
Ph.D., University of Illinois at Champaign Urbana, Physiology          
M.S., Wuhan University, Microbiology
B.S., Qufu Normal University, Biological Sciences

Cells detect and respond to external signals (such as an increase in temperature or nutrients) by activating certain intracellular proteins. When the environmental cues are gone, these proteins must be inactivated to avoid overreaction of the cells. Inactivation of proteins is in part through their degradation. Research in my laboratory focuses on the function of one protein named dual-specificity phosphatase 8(DUSP8) in the heart. My prior research has demonstrated that if DUSP8 level is abnormally high in the experimental mice, it will lead to heart failure. This data suggests that DUSP8 protein level must be tightly controlled. Preliminary study performed here at GVSU showed that half of the total DUSP8 proteins was lost after 6 hours (Fig. 1).  One explanation for the loss of DUSP8 protein is its degradation over time. The overall goal of this study is to investigate the cellular mechanism controlling the degradation of DUSP8. Specifically, this study will determine whether PEST amino acids within DUSP8 protein serve as the destruction signal to recruit other proteins for DUSP8 degradation.