
Dr. Kate White of the University of Southern California presents
March 4 @ 4:00 pm - 5:00 pm

Kate White, PhD
Gabilan Assistant Professor of Chemistry
Department of Chemistry
University of Southern California
Seminar Title: “Chemical biology approaches for mapping peptide hormone maturation”
Please join us and show support for our seminar speakers!
(For those unable to attend, a zoom link is available upon request to Mimi Baltz.)
Host: Rob Nicholas
Dr. White studies secretion in pancreatic beta cells and neuron and is a former postdoc of the Nicholas and Roth Labs.
“Our lab focuses on developing new chemical biology tools to uncover how cells coordinate the secretion of peptide hormones—small chains of amino acids that circulate in the blood and bind to specific cell receptors. Defects in the storage, maturation (enzymatic cleavage), or secretion of these hormones can lead to various mental and metabolic disorders, including depression, bipolar disorder, and diabetes. Using pancreatic β-cells and neurons as model systems, we investigate how these cells reorganize during peptide hormone production, trafficking, and secretion. Despite the critical role of this secretion mechanism, the cellular signals regulating secretory vesicle maturation are still unclear. To address this knowledge gap, our lab has four main research directions:
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Define signaling pathways that regulate peptide hormone maturation.
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Investigate the biochemical role of inter-organelle communication in regulating secretory systems.
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Examine the biochemical role of cellular and organelle subtypes in secretory cells.
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Develop community-based tools to support the next generation of cellular modeling.”