Peter P. Sayeski, Ph.D. Associate Professor Phone: (352) 392-1816 Fax: (352) 846-0270 Office: M-537 Email: psayeski@ufl.edu Publications: Search PubMed

The research in my laboratory is focused on better understanding the function of the tyrosine kinase, Jak2, and its role in human disease. Jak2 is expressed in nearly every tissue in the body. It is essential for life as animals lacking a functional Jak2 allele die during embryonic development. On the other hand, studies over the past decade have demonstrated that too much Jak2 kinase activity correlates with several human diseases including cardiovascular disease, diabetes and several types of cancer. Additionally, recent data has demonstrated that a specific Jak2 mutation, Jak2-V617F, is the cause of several types of blood disorders. Work in the lab is aimed at better understanding how Jak2 function is regulated within the cell and how we might be able to develop specific Jak2 inhibitors. Our hope is that we may one day be able to inhibit diseases that are caused by Jak2. A variety of cellular, molecular, genetic, biochemical and bio-informatic techniques are used for these studies.

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