Dr. Gildea is a biologist with twelve years full time research experience in the lab. He has worked for two different biotechnology companies where he mastered most techniques for detecting pathogenic organisms responsible for many human diseases. As a graduate student he was trained in basic biology research utilizing the model organism, drosophila melanogaster. Here he was successful in performing several genetic screens, cloned, sequenced and performed the initial characterization of five novel genes involved in chromatin regulation. As a postdoc Dr. Gildea developed a novel in-vitro motility assay ammenable to high throughput screening, and identified many signaling molecules involved in cell motility in bladder cancer. Verification of the affects of key signaling molecules in an orthotopic invasion progression model is then performed. Since working at the MARC, Dr. Gildea has been investigating the cell signaling mechanisms of the dopaminergic system in kidney proximal tubule cells that leading to decreases in sodium transport. Dr. Gildea has broad technical skills including most routine molecular biology, cell biology, and genetic techniques.