Research in Dr. Nerbonne’s laboratory is focused primarily on delineating the mechanisms involved in the regulation and modulation of voltage gated ion channels in cardiac myocytes and cortical neurons. In myocytes, her interest is in the Ca++ independent depolarization activated K+ channels that determine the height and the duration of the cardiac action potential. In addition to examining the electrophysiological properties of these channels, she is exploring the molecular basis of the functional diversity of K+ channels found in cardiac cells and the molecular mechanisms controlling the regulation of functional K+ channel expression in the normal as well as the diseased heart. She is also exploring dominant negative strategies to effect the functional knockout of K+ channels in the mouse heart and examining the physiological and pathophysiological consequences of these manipulations.

For more information about Dr. Nerbonne, you can view her webpage at:
http://molecool.wustl.edu/nerbonne.htm