KARINA J. VARGAS, PHD

RESEARCH SCIENTIST

MARINE BIOLOGICAL LABORATORY

WOODS HOLE

I am studying the effects of synuclein on clathrin mediated synaptic vesicle endocytosis. Working at the MBL, I have had the opportunity to master working with a very relevant and convenient model, the lamprey giant synapse. The synapses from this animal are especially useful to visualize the synaptic vesicle trafficking pathway because they are bigger than common model synapses. This synapses can be acutely  modified and I used them combined with the mouse model for my research on synaptic effects of synuclein on clathrin mediated synaptic vesicle endocytosis.

February 2014 - February 2018

ASSOCIATE RESEARCH SCIENTIST

YALE UNIVERSITY

I studied the molecular mechanism of synuclein participation in clathrin mediated endocytosis. I showed that the synaptic vesicle endocytosis deficit can be explained but not limited to changes observed in clathrin assembly. I monitored clathrin polymerization on the membrane using in vitro experiments, and I determined that clathrin structures are altered by the presence or absence of α-synuclein (Vargas et al., BioRxiv 2020).

March 2013 - February 2014

RESEARCH SCIENTIST

YALE UNIVERSITY

I studied the morphological changes on synuclein triple knock-out and human alpha-synuclein knock-in synapses, including anomalies in the distribution of synaptic vesicles and the proteinaceous structures that bind them to the membrane (tethers) and to each other (connectors) using cryoelectron microscopy (Cell Reports, Vargas et al., 2017).

March 2010- February 2013

POSTDOCTORAL FELLOW

YALE UNIVERSITY

I started my career in the synuclein field by getting a Latin American Pew fellowship, a prestigious fellowship that selects 6-8 fellows every year from all Latin America. My first studies in a synuclein triple knock-out mouse model showed a deficit in synaptic vesicle endocytosis, specifically pointing to early endocytic defects (Journal of Neuroscience, Vargas et al., 2014)