CReM Seminar: Regulation of Stem Cell Fate, Feb. 15
Join the Center for Regenerative Medicine (CReM) on Tuesday, February 15 as it hosts Dr. Helen M. Blau, the Donald E. and Delia B. Baxter Professor in the Department of Molecular Pharmocology at the Stanford University School of Medicine. Dr. Blau is also Director of the Baxter Laboratory for Stem Cell Biology in the Department of Microbiology and Immunology and the Stanford Institute for Stem Cell Biology and Regenerative Medicine. A world-renowned scientist with a research focus in regenerative medicine and stem cells, Dr. Blau’s many honors and awards include an Honorary Doctorate from the University Nijmegen, Holland, a Nobel Forum Lecture at the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm, and a Fulbright Senior Specialist award to study and teach at the Institut Pasteur in Paris.
Dr. Blau’s lecture on the BU Medical Campus will focus on the Regulation of Stem Cell Fate. Her laboratory uses nanotechnology to study the soluble and tethered factors that influence differentiation decisions of stem cells. Through the use of microwell arrays, Dr. Blau’s lab can apply a wide range of “niche” conditions to single cells and then observe their effects with time lapse microscopy. This allows her lab to imitate in vivo microenvironments in vitro. In addition, Dr. Blau’s research aims to elucidate the molecular mechanisms of both nuclear reprogramming and stem cell fate, and to explore the balance between the stable differentiated state and the plasticity cells apparently retain even after “terminal” differentiation.
The CReM is a collaborative effort among scientists on the Medical and Charles River campuses of Boston University that aims to advance stem cell research and regenerative medicine, particularly for the benefit of patients afflicted with diseases seen at Boston Medical Center (BMC). The Center’s monthly Seminar Series brings the leading minds in stem cell research to BUMC. Past speakers have included, among others, George Daley, Rudolf Jaenisch, and Doug Melton.
Learn more on Tuesday, February 15, 2011 at 9 a.m. with Dr. Blau in the Evans Biomedical Research Center, Room X715.