Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine

Description of Interests

We are interested in the functional roles of chondroitin sulfates and chondroitin sulfotransferase genes in mammalian development, disease, and cellular signaling pathways. Specifically, we are currently investigating the roles of the sulfotransferase C4ST-1 and its chondroitin sulfate products in breast cancer progression, in the pediatric disease Costello syndrome, in osteoarthritis, in developmental processes including ES cell differentiation and cell lineage determination, and in the control of Wnt signaling. Our long-term goal is the development of carbohydrate-based pharmacological interventions for the treatment of cancer and cardiovascular disease.