Faculty & Staff

Whitney Hable

University of Arizona, 1996 Ph.D
Molecular, cellular and developmental biology, marine biology
Assistant Professor

Research Interests:
My research focuses on the cellular and molecular mechanisms underlying cell polarization, growth and development. I am specifically interested the role that the actin cytoskeleton plays in these processes, and how actin dynamics are regulated.

Cell polarization, the generation of asymmetry within a cell, is an essential event underlying many biological processes. For example, in many plant and animal embryos, polarity is established in the egg or zygote, and ultimately determines the basic organization of tissues and organs within the organism. I am investigating this process in zygotes of marine brown algae in the genera Fucus and Silvetia. In these model organisms, polarity is established in the zygote by the site of fertilization, and can be reoriented by environmental signals such as unidirectional light. Actin dynamics are essential for both fertilization-induced polarization and light-induced reorientation of polarity. Current research questions include: 1) Which protein pathways regulate the assembly of actin filaments? 2) What are the molecular mechanisms regulating actin mRNA and protein levels?

A second project, in collaboration with Dr. Ken Oliveira, investigates gametogenesis and fertilization in the American eel, Anguilla rostrata. After spending many years in or near freshwater habitats, adults migrate to and spawn in the Sargasso Sea, where investigations of reproductive behavior and early development are not possible. We have developed protocols to induce sexual maturation of both male and female eels, and our research has resulted in the first successful artificial fertilization in this species. Current research questions include: 1) What are the stages and timing of early embryogenesis? 2) What are the effects of pollutants on gametogenesis and fertilization?

Recent Publications:
Muzzy R.A. and Hable W.E. (2008) Rac1 function during fucoid development. Plant Signaling and Behavior 3:717-719.

Hassoun* L., Hable W.E., and Payne-Ferreira T. (2008) Tissue Regeneration in the Classroom. American Biology Teacher 70:546-549.

Hable W.E., Reddy* S., Julien* L. (2008) The Rac1 inhibitor, NSC23766, depolarizes adhesive secretion, endomembrane cycling, and tip growth in the fucoid alga, Silvetia compressa. Planta 227:991-1000.

Hadley* R., Hable W.E., and Kropf D.L. (2006) Polarization of the endomembrane system is an early event in fucoid zygote development. BMC Plant Biology 6:1-10.

Hable W.E., and Kropf D.L. (2005) The Arp2/3 complex nucleates actin arrays during zygote polarity establishment and growth. Cell Motility and the Cytoskeleton 61: 9-20.

Bisgrove S.R., Hable, W.E. and Kropf D.L. (2004) +TIPS and microtubule regulation. The beginning of the plus end in plants. Plant Physiol. 136: 3855-3863.

Hable W.E., Miller* N.R., and Kropf D.L. (2003) Polarity establishment requires dynamic actin in fucoid zygotes. Protoplasma 221: 193-204.

*Denotes undergraduate co-authors

Courses Taught:
Bio 434/534 Advanced Cell Biology
Bio 224 Anatomy and Physiology Laboratory
Bio 244 Biology of Cells Laboratory
Bio 421 Developmental Biology

Graduate Students:
Rachel Muzzy, 2007-present
Jennifer Kinsey, 2007-present
Andrea Carey, 2009-present

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