My laboratory uses fruit flies to study human cancer. Fruit flies and human share the majority of their genes and more than 70% of human disease genes have evolutionarily conserved homologs in flies. Most signal transduction pathways and molecular mechanisms involved in cell growth are also well conserved in flies. Hence, fruit flies have been an excellent model organism to study the molecular mechanism underlying many human diseases including cancer.  Low handling cost, short life cycle, valuable genetic techniques and tools available in flies and simplicity are major values that fruit flies offer to facilitate the understanding of mechanisms underlying human disease. My lab focuses on the cancer caused by the human papillomavirus (HPV). We employ a variety of techniques including genetics, cell, molecular, biochemistry, and high resolution microscopy to answer questions related to the mechanism of HPV action in epithelial cells as well as identify novel therapeutic targets for HPV-induced cancers.

• Padash Barmchi M, Gilbert M, Thomas M, Banks L, Zhang B, Auld VJ. 2016. A Drosophila Model of HPV E6-Induced Malignancy Reveal Essential Roles for Magi and the Insulin Receptor. PLoS Pathog 12(8): e1005789. doi:10.1371
• Padash Barmchi M., Samarasekera G., Gilbert M., Auld V.J., Zhang B. 2016. Magi Is Associated with the Par Complex and Functions Antagonistically with Bazooka to Regulate the Apical Polarity Complex. PLoS ONE. Apr 13;11(4)
• Sharifkhodaei Z., Padash Barmchi M., Gilbert M., Samarasekera G., Fulga T.A., Van Vactor D., Auld V. 2016. The Drosophila tricellular junction protein Gliotactin regulates its own mRNA levels through BMP-mediated induction of miR-184. J Cell Sci. Apr 1; 129 (7)
• Vanlandingham P.A., Barmchi MP., Royer S., Green R., Bao H., Reist N., Zhang B. 2014.AP180 couples protein retrieval to clathrin-mediated endocytosis of synaptic vesicles. Traffic. 15: 433-50
• Padash-Barmchi M., Charish K., Auld V.J. 2013. Gliotactin and Discs-large are co-regulated to maintain epithelial integrity. J Cell Sci. 126: 1134-43.
• Padash-Barmchi M., Browne K., Sturgeon K., Jusiak B., Auld V.J. 2010. Control of Gliotactin localization and levels by tyrosine phosphorylation and endocytosis is necessary for survival of polarized epithelia. J Cell Sci. 123: 4052-62
• Mulinari S., Barmchi MP., Hacker U. 2008. DRhoGEF2 and diaphanous regulate contractile force during segmental groove morphogenesis in the Drosophila embryo. Mol Biol Cell. 19: 1883-92
• Padash Barmchi M., Rogers, S., Häcker, U. 2005. DRhoGEF2 regulates actin organization and contractility in the Drosophila blastoderm embryo. The Journal of Cell Biology, 168: 575-585
• Häcker U., Nystedt S., Barmchi MP., Horn C., Wimmer E.A. 2003. piggyBac-based insertional mutagenesis in the presence of stably integrated P elements in Drosophila. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A,100: 7720-7725