Our research interests center on the structure and function of proteins involved in signal transduction. These include two important membrane proteins (nicotinic acetylcholine receptors and glutamate receptors) and an intracellular GTP binding protein (Cdc42Hs). Nicotinic acetylcholine and glutamate receptors are large membrane-bound proteins which mediate the flow of ions from the exterior to the interior of a cell following an interaction with a small organic molecule (i.e.,  an agonist). Acetylcholine receptors are important neurotransmitter receptors in skeletal muscle, the peripheral nervous system, and the central nervous system; glutamate receptors are the primary excitatory neurotransmitter receptors in the vertebrate central nervous system. Cdc42Hs is a soluble protein involved in signaling pathways related to the structure of cytoskeleton.