Disease Programs

Regeneration

Olivia Bermingham-McDonogh, PhD (Otolaryngology; Virginia Merrill Bloedel Hearing Research Center )

Her research involves development and regeneration of the mammalian cochlea. With 10% of the population experiencing significant hearing loss figuring out how to regenerate the hair cells is an important goal. It is not clear if the most promising approach will be to use exogenous stem cells or to attempt to stimulate inherent cells to divide and differentiate. This group is looking at all avenues.

Nelson Fausto (Chair, Pathology)

Liver regeneration in mammals. Our lab is considered to be one of the top in the world in studies of liver regeneration and liver stem cells. We have discovered mechanisms of initiation of liver regeneration and identified growth factors involved in the process. These studies have a direct impact on liver transplantation in humans (particularly living donor-liver transplantation) and the treatment of patients with acute liver failure. We were one of the first labs that identified intrahepatic liver stem cells, and have recently isolated and produced clonal cell lines of mesoendodermal cells from human fetal liver capable of generating hepatocytes and bile duct lineages.

Clifford R. Hume, MD, PhD (Otolaryngology-HNS, Virginia Merrill Bloedel Hearing Research Center, UWMC)

The long-term goal of our research is to identify the molecular signals that regulate the formation of hair cells and their neuronal connections during development and use these signals to develop new strategies to treat human hearing loss. Major research projects focus on using transcription factor (bHLH, LIM-HD, HB) manipulation to regenerate damaged or missing cell types in the inner ear and repair of auditory neuron innervation through targeted growth factor expression. To extend these efforts in vivo, we devote a significant effort to optimizing gene delivery tools for use in the inner ear.

Randall T. Moon (Director, ISCRM; Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Pharmacology):

This lab works on controlling regeneration, and endogenous and transplanted stem and progenitor cells in vitro, by manipulating signal transduction pathways with small molecules. One example is increasing the success of hematopoietic stem cell transplant by activating the ß-catenin pathway, which is an approach moving into clinical trials. Another example is that the group has shown that enhancing the same pathway promotes regeneration of entire structures such as limbs in lower vertebrates. The laboratory is recognized as a world leader in signal transduction pathways involved in development and disease.

Elizabeth Oesterle (Otolaryngology-HNS, Virginia Merrill Bloedel Hearing Research Center, UWMC)

Our group works to restore hearing and balance problems by stimulating the regeneration of hair cells in adult inner ear tissues. We work to control the proliferation of endogenous stem/progenitor cells in inner ear sensory tissue by the addition of small molecules or by manipulating signaling pathways. One example is by adding members of the epidermal growth factor family, that we have discovered can stimulate limited production of new cells in mature inner ear tissues involved with balance (vestibular sensory epithelia).

Ed Rubel (Virginia Merrill Bloedel Hearing Research Center, UWMC)

The major subject of focus is regenerating inner ear hair cells to restore hearing, a process these researchers discovered in birds. The discover of the potential for hair cell regeneration in the inner forever changed our outlook on the future of treatment of heating loss. It is now not a question of if we will someday treat hearing loss by regeneration, it is when. Regenerative medicine will lead to curing types of hearing loss that we traditionally thought were only treatable through hearing aids or cochlear implants. We were one of the two groups that originally discovered inner ear hair cell regeneration and about 1/3 of the world's literature on that subject has been contributed to by the UW group. While other groups are and have made important contributions, we are the largest and most productive group in this area.

Gerold Schubiger (Biology)

Regeneration in Drosophila. Genes studied here are then studied further in vertebrates.

Jennifer Stone, PhD (Bloedel Hearing Research Center, UWMC)

This laboratory examines cellular and molecular mechanisms of hair cell regeneration in an avian model. The goal is to identify properties and regulation of sensory epithelial-derived stem cells/progenitors cells in birds, which undergo robust spontaneous hair cell regeneration. Ultimately, information gleaned from these studies will be used to determine why mammalian species fail to spontaneously regenerate hair cells and to develop regenerative therapies that can eventually be applied to treat deafness in humans.

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