Epigenomic Regulation of Neural Stem Cells (NSCs) and neuronal cells

Neural Stem Cells (NSCs) exist in a limited population in the mammalian brain.  These multipotent progenitors can give rise to all cell types in the brain.  Neuronal Progenitor Cells (NPCs) are precursors to various neuronal cell types.  Both are progenitor/stem cells, but a clear difference exist in developmental competence.  We are using in vivo cells isolated from the developing brain and differentiation of hESCs to investigate these cells using epigenomic tools.

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Current projects in the lab related to this topic include:

• Neural Development. Using FACS and GFP markers for specific populations of cells in the developing nervous system, we are profiling cells using whole genome bisulfite sequencing.
• Neural Differentiation.  To complement our in vivo studies, we are differentiating hESCs into NSCs and using epigenomic tools to understand cell fate regulation and differentiation.