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Dr. Pamela Hoppe is an associate professor in the Department of Biological Sciences at Western Â鶹´«Ã½Ó¦Óà University.

Hoppe uses the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans as a model to study striated muscle cells. The lab uses a combination of molecular genetics and cell biology to identify and study proteins important for the formation and maintenance of the highly ordered muscle cytoskeleton. Research is centered on a newly identified protein kinase that is encoded by the unc-82 gene in C. elegans, and is conserved in mammals and insects. The UNC-82 kinase is required for proper placement of myosin filaments within the muscle contractile apparatus, and may play a similar role in other tissue types. A major goal of ongoing and future experiments is to determine the functional role of UNC-82 kinase in vivo and in vitro, and to identify other proteins in this regulatory or signaling pathway. This research is funded by the National Science Foundation.