Major research activities

Muscle stem cells, also called satellite cells are undifferentiated cells that reside within our skeletal muscle tissues and are critical for the repair and maintenance of muscle throughout our adult life. However, during aging and under various muscle-wasting diseases such as muscular dystrophies and cachexia their ability to repair and maintain muscle tissue is dramatically compromised either because of the depletion of their pool or because of the loss of their regenerative function. The focus of our research group is to study the mechanisms that ensure muscle stem cell survival and their regenerative potential and how muscle diseases impair these processes. The laboratory uses a variety of mouse models, in vivo and in vitro approaches combined with high-throughput computational analyses. Key ongoing projects in the lab include:

Genetic and epigenetic mechanisms that regulate muscle stem cell identity, survival, self-renewal and differentiation in development and disease.

Identifying novel interactions between muscle stem and niche cells and how aging impact such interactions.

Exploring novel compounds and pathways that can rejuvenate muscle stem cells function in aging using various mouse models, molecular genetics, and computational analyses.