Jeffrey Esko

Research in my laboratory focuses on the structure, biosynthesis, and function of proteoglycans, using genetics to modulate their expression in cells and mice. Current work in my lab cab be divided into several areas:  (i) building tools and systems level approaches to the discovery of heparan sulfate-binding protein expressed on cells; (ii) studies of proteoglycans in vascular biology, in particular lipoprotein metabolism and atherosclerosis; (iii) studies on the neuropathology of lysosomal storage diseases and the development of agents that allow delivery of macromolecules to the brain; (iv) and studies of potential therapeutic agents for treating Hereditary Multiple Exostoses, a pediatric disorder in which children develop ectopic osteochondromas due to haploinsufficiency in heparan sulfate formation.