Gupton Lab
Stephanie L. Gupton, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor
Department of Cell and Developmental Biology
UNC Lineberger Comprehesive Cancer Center
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•B.S. North Carolina State University, 2001
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•Ph.D. Scripps Research Institute, 2006
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•Post-Doc Massachusetts Institute for Technology, 2006-2011
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•Joined the department in 2011
stephanie_gupton[at]med[dot]unc[dot]edu
111 Mason Farm Road
4332 MBRB, CB 7090
919-843-7387
Cell shape change and motility are important functions required for proper embryonic development when cells differentiate and migrate to their destination in the organism. A dynamic actin cytoskeleton is critical for the force production necessary to push the plasma membrane, while membrane trafficking supplies plasma membrane components during this remodeling. The rapid and complex morphological changes seen in developing neurons extending neurites illustrate the need for proper regulation of cytoskeletal and vesicle dynamics. Similarly, cell shape change and motility in a tumor is a fundamental step leading to tumor metastasis, orchestrated cytoskeletal changes and membrane trafficking play a key role here as well. We are interested in the coordination and regulation of cytoskeletal dynamics and membrane trafficking that underlie cell shape change and cell motility during both development and cancer metastasis, and hypothesize that there will be many commonalities between these two systems. We utilize a variety techniques including high resolution live cell microscopy, gene disruption, mouse models, and biochemistry to understand the complex coordination of these subcellular machines driving shape change and motility in primary cell culture models, tissue culture models as well as in the developing vertebrate nervous system.
