Research in stem cell pathology

Besides immediate support of stem cell faculty research by experienced comparative pathologists, the stem cell pathology unit addresses an urgent need for development of stem cell pathology as a discipline able to match rapid advances of stem cell research and regenerative medicine. The goals of stem cell pathology are to evaluate the consequences of genetic manipulations in stem cells, and to determine the roles of stem cells in regenerative medicine and pathogenesis of various diseases, such as cancer. Studies of disease pathogenesis are increasingly relying on cell fate mapping by lineage tracing analysis in genetically modified mice. Such approaches require significant expertise in pathology for accurate interpretation of novel findings. Another critical stem cell research area is identification and characterization of anatomically localized stem cell niches during disease initiation and progression. Accurate assessment of pathological changes in stem cell niches by trained pathologists is becoming a necessity. Various topics in regenerative medicine, such as in situ contributions of stem cells to normal and pathological regeneration, and organismal reactions to transplantations of various bioengineering constructs also require support by dedicated pathologists.