Established Investigator
$880,000 DsRNA and Epigenetic Regulation in Embryonic Stem Cells,
Gordon Carmichael, UConn Health Center.
Embryonic stem cells are endowed with two remarkable features. They have the capacity for self-renewal and to grow indefinitely, and they also have pluripotency, the potential to change into virtually any cell in the human body. The goals of the project are to explore the key molecular factors that govern “stemness,” and to develop technologies that will allow manipulation of stem cells and their genes.
$880,000 Alternative Splicing in Human Embryonic Stem Cells,
Brenton Graveley, principal investigator UConn Health Center.
In order to fully understand how human embryonic stem cells work and to develop the ability to differentiate them into specific cell types, it is essential to determine which genes and proteins are expressed in stem cells. While many studies have been conducted to clarify which genes are expressed in stem cells, all of them have overlooked an important aspect of gene expression - alternative splicing, the process by which a single gene can give rise to multiple proteins by cutting and pasting the RNA produced by the gene in different ways. The study will aim to full this research gap.
$880,000 ChIP-chip Analysis to Screen Target Genes of BMP and TGF
Signaling in Human ES Cells, Ren-He Xu, principal investigator, UConn Health Center.
The project extends earlier research through which two essential signaling pathways have been identified that governs the early fates of human embryonic stem cells. One of these pathways promotes the cells to differentiate, while the other sustains their self-renewal. The research will seek to identify genes that regulate both pathways.
$529,871 Optimizing Axonal Regeneration Using a Polymer Implant Containing
hESC-derived Glia, Akiko Nishiyama, Department of Physiology and Neurobiology.
When nerve fibers are severed in the brain and spinal cord, they do not regenerate efficiently. Consequently, people who suffer damage to the brain or spine often suffer a permanent loss of function. Yet nerve fibers appear to have the potential to regenerate. Their capacity to do so is limited by environmental factors. The goal of the project is to identify methods to promote regeneration of injured nerve cells in the brain by using glial cells, cells that naturally support the health of nerves, derived from human embryonic stem cells.
$561,631 Migration and Integration of Embryonic Stem Cell Derived Neurons into Cerebral Cortex,
Joseph LoTurco, principal investigator, Department of Physiology and Neurobiology.
The project studies the genes that control the migration of stem cell-derived neurons in the brain and will test whether some of the same proteins necessary for migration in normal brain development are also necessary for migration of transplanted stem cells. Additionally, the research focuses on ways to explore the migration of transplanted stem cells by manipulating the expression of proteins that are known to be necessary for migration in normal development.