51ÁÔÆæ

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Claire de la Cova

  • Assistant Professor, Biological Sciences

Education

  • Post-doctoral Training/Associate, Columbia University, New York, NY, 2008-2018
  • PhD, Genetics and Development, Columbia University, New York, NY, 2008
  • BA, Biology, Macalester College, Saint Paul, MN, 1999

Courses Taught

  • BIO SCI 325 - Genetics
  • BIO SCI 498 - Genetics of Development and Cancer

Research Interests

My research focuses on cell communication mediated by the Ras-MAP kinase cascade, a conserved signal transduction pathway that acts in a diverse set of cellular processes, including neuronal function, membrane organization, cell proliferation, fate specification, and aging. In animals, a growing body of research suggests that Ras signaling is modulated by inhibitory and negative feedback mechanisms, but our understanding of this network is incomplete.

My laboratory takes both genetic and quantitative imaging approaches to understand the regulatory logic of Ras signaling in animal development. We utilize the small worm Caenorhabditis elegans (C. elegans) as an experimental model to understand the consequences of mutations that perturb Ras signaling in human diseases, and to genetically identify novel regulators that inhibit signal transduction.

Selected Publications

Townley RA, Stacy KS, Cheraghi F, de la Cova CC. The Raf/LIN-45 C-terminal distal tail segment negatively regulates signaling in Caenorhabditis elegans. Genetics. 2024. 228(3):iyae152. 
Rodriguez Torres CS, Wicker NB, Puccini de Castro V, Stefinko M, Bennett DC, Bernhardt B, Garcia Montes de Oca M, Jallow S, Flitcroft K, Palalay JS, Payán Parra OA, Stern YE, Koelle M, Voisine Cindy, Woods IG, Lo T, Stern MJ, de la Cova CC. The Caenorhabditis elegans protein SOC-3 permits an alternative mode of signal transduction by the EGL-15 FGF receptor. Developmental Biology. 2024. 516:183-195. .
Kodra AL, Sharma Singh A, de la Cova C, Ziosi M, Johnston LA*. The Drosophila TNF Eiger promotes Myc super-competition independent of canonical JNK signaling. Genetics. 2024. iyae107. .
Townley R, Deniaud A, Stacy KS, Rodriguez Torres CS, Cheraghi F, Wicker NB, de la Cova CC. The E3/E4 ubiquitin ligase UFD-2 suppresses normal and oncogenic signaling mediated by a Raf ortholog in Caenorhabditis elegans. Sci Signal. 2023. 16(800):eabq4355. .
de la Cova CC. The Highs and Lows of FBXW7: New Insights into Substrate Affinity in Disease and Development. Cells. 2023. 12(17):2141. .
de la Cova CC, Townley R, Greenwald I. Negative feedback by conserved kinases patterns the degradation of Caenorhabditis elegans Raf in vulval fate patterning. Development. 2020. 147(24):dev195941. .
Kodra A, de la Cova C, Gerhold AR, Johnston LA. Widely Used Mutants of eiger, Encoding the Drosophila Tumor Necrosis Factor, Carry Additional Mutations in the NimrodC1 Phagocytosis Receptor. G3 Genes Genomes Genetics. 2020. 10(12):4707-4712. .
de la Cova C, Townley R, Regot S, and Greenwald I. A real-time biosensor for ERK activity reveals signaling dynamics during C. elegans cell fate specification. Developmental Cell. 2017. 42(5):542-553. .
Meyer SN, Amoyel M, Bergantiños C, de la Cova C, Schertel C, Basler K, Johnston LA. An ancient defense system eliminates unfit cells from developing tissues during cell competition. Science. 2014. 346(6214):1258236. .
de la Cova C, Senoo-Matsuda N, Ziosi M, Wu DC, Bellosta P, Quinzii CM, Johnston LA. Supercompetitor status of Drosophila Myc cells requires p53 as a fitness sensor to reprogram metabolism and promote viability. Cell Metabolism. 2014. 19(3):470-483. .
de la Cova C and Greenwald I. SEL-10/Fbw7-dependent negative feedback regulation of LIN-45/Braf signaling in C. elegans via a conserved phosphodegron. Genes and Development. 2012. 26(22):2524-2535. .
de la Cova C and Johnston LA. Myc in model organisms: a view from the flyroom. Seminars in Cancer Biology. 2006. 16(4):303-312. 
de la Cova C, Abril M, Bellosta P, Gallant P, Johnston LA. Drosophila Myc regulates organ size by inducing cell competition. 2004. Cell. 117(1):107-116. .