Year 1

During this award period we have made significant progress. We have established induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC) lines from four patients with Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease type 1A (CMT1A) due to the PMP22 duplication. We have validated our strategy to genetically engineer induced pluripotent stem cells from patients with inherited neuropathy, and have genetically engineered several patient lines. We further have begun to differentiate these iPSCs into Schwann cell precursors, to begin to investigate cell type specific defects that cause peripheral neurodegeneration in patients with CMT1A. Finally we have imported and characterized a transgenic rat model of CMT1A in order to begin to investigate the ability to inject iPSC derived Schwann cell precursors into rodent nerves as a possible neuroprotective strategy.