Year 1

The central goal of this is to develop enhanced vehicles for gene delivery to human embryonic stem cells, both to modulate gene expression and to edit the cellular genome via homologous recombination. We have been using a novel directed evolution technology to improve the properties of a promising viral vehicle, and we are in the progress of progressively increasing gene delivery efficiency. In particular, we have isolated several viral vector variants with enhanced gene delivery to human embryonic stem cells.

In parallel, we have a strong interest in understanding and elucidating mechanisms of human pluripotent stem cell differentiation into dopaminergic neurons, with implications for Parkinson’s Disease. In particular, the transcription factor Lmx1a plays a role in this fate specification, but the underlying mechanisms are largely unknown. We are conducting chromatin immunoprecipitation coupled with next generation DNA sequencing to identify the genes in the cellular genome that this factor regulates. We have generated an antibody to isolate this protein from cells and are in the process of pulling down DNA bound to this factor within cells undergoing dopaminergic specification. Once we have identified relevant target genes, we will use the new gene delivery technology to study their functional role in dopaminergic specification of human embryonic stem cells.