Cell Lineages. Genetic Instability and Human Disease

The human body is a society of cells. This society of cell types and cell lineages is established during development to give rise to the tissues and organs of the body. The focus for this meeting is on how the differences in DNA damage, mutagenesis, repair and cell death in specific cell types or cell lineages influences disease risk or disease pathogenesis. Speakers will address what’s known about major repair pathways for DNA damage in human and in other mammalian cells, and then turn to a discussion of mutation and genetic instability in specific cell lineages and the role of genetic instability in the pathogenesis of cancer and aging. Genetic and epigenetic modification of gene expression, in somatic and germ cell lineages, will be discussed.