The Rodan Lab

My laboratory is interested in how the body responds to ion and water stresses, such as the modern high sodium, low potassium diet (opposite to the low sodium, high potassium diet present during early human evolution) or during periods of dehydration.

We use Drosophila to study these processes, taking advantage of its short life cycle, sophisticated genetics, and accessible physiology, with a focus on orthologs of human genes linked to ion and water homeostasis.

• WNK kinases - sensors of ions and water

  WNK kinases are mutated in a human disorder characterized by high blood pressure and high potassium. We are studying how these kinases are directly regulated by ions and osmotic stress.

• Metabolic Adaptations to Ion and Water Stress

  We are unraveling the metabolic adaptations to ion and water stress (for example, high salt or limited water) by studying Drosophila mutants with impaired or improved ability to survive these stresses. Current genes of interest are NFAT, RGS14/loco, and TMEM135.