Professional Experiences

• Assistant Professor, Eastern Virginia Medical School, Department of Physiological Sciences
• Research Assistant Professor, Eastern Virginia Medical School, Department of Physiological Sciences
• Postdoctoral Fellow, Eastern Virginia Medical School, Department of Physiological Sciences
• Research Associate, Eastern Virginia Medical School, Department of Microbiology and Molecular Cell Biology
• Research Associate, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas, Hamon Center for Therapeutic Oncology

Education

• Ph.D., Eotvos Lorand University, National Institute of Oncology, Budapest, Hungary
• M.S., Eotvos Lorand University, Budapest, Hungary

Teaching

• Medical Biochemistry (small group)
• Medical Biochemistry (lecturer)
• Research Techniques (lecturer)

Memberships

• Biophysical Society
• American Society for Cell Biology

Awards

• Postdoctoral Fellowship, American Heart Association, 2005-2007
• Travel Grant, International Biophysics Congress in Montpellier, France. National Academies and Biophysical Society, 2005

The overarching theme of my research is to better understand the molecular basis of myosin function. Myosins are ATP driven motor proteins. Conventional myosins (skeletal, smooth and cardiac myosin) form bipolar filaments and exert force thru these assemblies. Unconventional myosins such as myosin V and myosin VII function either as single molecules or assemblies in cells. Myosin VIIa is predominantly expressed in the inner ear and the retina, and mutations in the myosin VIIa gene are associated with the USHER 1B syndrome (congenital deafness and prepubertal onset of blindness) in humans and the shaker-1 phenotype in mice.

We are currently investigating the structure and function of the myosin VIIa motor protein. We use molecular biological techniques to engineer mutants and express the protein in a baculovirus/insect cell expression system. We study the ATP hydrolysis mechanism using steady-state and transient kinetic assays. I collaborate with Dr. Takeshi Sakamoto (Wayne State University) on the motility studies and with Dr. James Sellers (NIH/NHLBI), Dr. Neil Billington (NIH/NHLBI) and Dr. Attila Nagy (NIH/NHLBI) on the electron microscopy and atomic force microscopy studies.

Another project in the laboratory is aimed to study the consequences of β-cardiac myosin mutations in cardiomyopathy in collaboration with Dr. Donald Winkelmann (Robert Wood Johnson Medical School).

Selected publications

Jessica Haithcock, Neil Billington, Kevin Choi, Jennifer Fordham, James R. Sellers, Walter F. Stafford, Howard White and Eva Forgacs.  The Kinetic Mechanism of Mouse Myosin VIIa.  J. Biol Chem., 2011 Jan 6 [Epub ahead of print]

Olusola Oke, Stan Burgess, Eva Forgacs, Peter J Knight, Takeshi Sakamoto, James R Sellers, Howard White and John Trinick.  Influence of lever structure on myosin 5a walking.  PNAS, 107:2509-14, 2010

Thomas G. Baboolal, Takeshi Sakamoto, Eva Forgacs, Howard D. White, Scott M. Jackson, Yasuharu Takagi, Rachel E. Farrow, Justin E. Molloy, Peter J. Knight, James R. Sellers, Michelle Peckham. The SAH domain extends the functional length of the myosin lever, PNAS, 106:22193-8, 2009

Forgacs Eva, Sakamoto Takeshi, Cartwright Suzanne, Belknap Betty, Kovács Mihály, Tóth Judit, Webb Martin R., Sellers James R. and White Howard D. The Switch-1 Mutation Ser 217Ala Converts MyosinV into a Low Duty Ratio Motor. J Biol Chem., 284, 2138-49, 2009.

Sakamoto Takeshi, Webb Martin R., Forgacs Eva, White Howard D. and James R. Sellers.  Direct observation of the mechanochemical coupling in myosin Va during processive movement.  Nature, 455, 128-132, 2008.

Eva Forgacs, Suzanne Cartwright, Takeshi Sakamoto, James Sellers, John E.T. Corrie, Martin R. Webb and White HD.  Kinetics of ADP Dissociation from the Trail and Lead Heads of ActomyosinV Following the Powerstroke."  J Biol Chem. 283, 766-73, 2008.

Eva Forgacs, Suzanne Cartwright, Mihály Kovács, Takeshi Sakamoto, James Sellers, John E.T. Corrie, Martin R. Webb and White HD.  Kinetic mechanism of myosin V-S1 using a new fluorescent ATP analog.  Biochemistry, 45, 13035-45, 2006.

Funding

"The Effect Of Deafness Associated Mutations on Myosin VIIA Function".  (PI: Eva Forgacs) NIH DC009335 05/01/2008-4/30/11

NIH/ DC009335 ARRA Supplement 07/17/09-06/30/10 is to study the biochemistry and function of the Usher 1B deafness mutants.