Molecules to Molecular Therapeutics
Stem Cells and Regenerative Medicine
Spring 2016
GMS MTM 710
Evans Biomedical Research Center, X-715
Wednesdays 10:00 – 11:50 am
Course Director: Gustavo Mostoslavsky
Office: 670 Albany Street, Suite 209
Phone: 617-638-6532
Grading: Oral presentation: 30% (Paper presentation on March 30th)
Final Exam: 70% (written examination on last day)
Summary: This course is designed to teach basic research and translational research skills to students in the Molecular Medicine Curriculum, using general principles of stem cells and their potential use in regenerative medicine. Students will first be exposed to the basic concepts and definitions of stem cells, the detailed study of different types of adult vs. pluripotent stem cells, and discuss ethical and practical considerations. Students will also learn about stem cell manipulation by novel gene editing techniques, recent advances in disease modeling and the potential use of stem cells in tissue and organ regeneration.
Course Schedule:
January 2016
Date Speaker Topics
20 Mostoslavsky Introduction to Stem Cells
27 Murphy Adult Somatic Stem Cells: The HSC a (not so) well-characterized stem cell
February 2016
3 Hawkins Adult Somatic Stem Cells: muscle and liver
10 Fine Are stem cells required for homeostasis and repair of organs: the case of lung and pancreas
17 Mostoslavsky Adult Somatic Stem Cells: Intestinal, NSC, Skin and hair stem cells
24 Gerstenfeld Adult Somatic Stem Cells: Bone and Cartilage Regeneration
March 2016
Date Speaker Topics
2 Kotton Embryonic stem cells: the paradigm shifting discovery of pluripotent cell cultures
16 Kotton Exiting pluripotency: the biology of cell fate decisions, directed differentiation and epigenomically encoded cellular memory
23 Ikonomou Stem cells engineering
30 Oral Presentation
by students Cross-species chimeras, organ regeneration
April 2016
6 Mostoslavsky Reprogramming: induced Pluripotent Stem Cells. Concepts and
methods for nuclear reprogramming.
13 Mehta Stem cells and gene networks
20 Mostoslavsky Genomic modifications of stem cells
27 Wilson ESC and iPS cells as tools for disease modeling and repair
May 2016
4 Final Exam – Written examination