Mika Caplan

Mika is a PhD student in the UCSD Biomedical Sciences Program in the lab of JoAnn Trejo in the Pharmacology Department. She is currently working to understand the role of the Src family kinases (SFKs) in G protein-coupled receptor signaling to the Hippo pathway as a regulator of breast cancer progression. In addition, she is interested in understanding the molecular mechanisms that regulate a tumor suppressor known as ARRDC3 in the context of breast carcinoma and to elucidate the networks that control the function and signaling of the G protein-coupled receptor, PAR1. She is using a number of biochemical and cell biology techniques to uncover a mechanism by which this α-arrestin is regulated in invasive breast carcinoma and these studies will help to further understand the complexity of this disease and could potentially contribute to the discovery of new targets susceptible to effective therapeutic treatment. She is also interested in understanding the evolutionary history of humans and the genetic and phenotypic differences between prehistoric hominid species.