We Carry Our World within Us: Cellular Structures That Allow Us to Live in a Hostile Environment

The architect Louis Sullivan coined the phrase “form follows function.” While Sullivan was referring to the design of human-made edifices, his words are no less insightful when applied to the realm of biological structure at the microscopic level. Cells are composed of a remarkable array of sub-cellular structures. In each tissue in our body, cellular architecture is beautifully adapted to accommodate each cell type’s specific physiological purpose. This talk will explore the nature and function of some of these subcellular structures and their roles in allowing us to persist in often hostile and rapidly changing external environments.

Dr. Caplan received his bachelor’s degree from Harvard University and his M.D. and Ph.D. degrees from Yale University in 1987. He joined Yale’s Department of Cellular and Molecular Physiology as a faculty member in 1988, where he is currently the C.N.H. Long Professor of Cellular and Molecular Physiology and Cell Biology.

He has received fellowships from the Helen Hay Whitney Foundation, the David and Lucille Packard Foundation for Science and Engineering, and a National Young Investigator Award from the National Science Foundation. He has also received the Young Investigator Awards from the American Physiological Society and the American Society of Nephrologists.

His work focuses on understanding the ways in which kidney cells organize and maintain their unique structures. His laboratory also studies the mechanisms responsible for Autosomal Dominant Polycystic Kidney Disease and is working to identify targets for new therapies.