The Buchsbaum Laboratory focuses on studying signal transduction pathways underlying cancer cell growth and metastasis. In particular, we are interested in pathways involving the Ras family of proteins, which are key signaling molecules in all aspects of cellular function. Our current focus is on the Rac protein, a central player in multiple signaling pathways found to be deranged in malignant cells. We have found that Rac signaling can be directed to multiple distinct pathways, involving cell survival and apoptosis, cell cycling and growth, and migration and invasion, by a major regulator protein, Tiam1. A major interest is the regulation of this Tiam1/Rac signaling network under normal and transformed conditions and whether this can be manipulated to affect the behavior of malignant cells. A second project in the lab is exploration of a novel mechanism we have identified underlying cancer cell invasion using in vivo models.