1. E-Box Accessibility in Myofibroblasts in Pulmonary Fibrosis - This study will examine the role of TWIST1 in the activation of myofibroblasts in pulmonary fibrosis. The student will gain experience in “massively parallel reporter assays” or MPRAs—an omics approach to the classical luciferase assay. The student will clone multiple TWIST1 constructs to determine how TWIST1 dimerization impacts fibrotic gene expression. The student will also gain experience in models of pulmonary fibrosis.
2. CXCL6 drives collagen synthesis in Pulmonary Fibrosis - This study focuses on the biology of collagen translation in pulmonary fibrosis as driven by the chemokine CXCL6. We will investigate CXCL6 signaling in fibroblasts. We will also investigate how the components of the ribosome may be essential for efficient translation of collagen I.
Our lab is interested in the biology of pulmonary fibrosis. Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis, or IPF, is the most common of pulmonary fibrosis. IPF typically results in death within 3 to 4 years from the time of diagnosis. Specifically our lab focuses on the how the fibroblast is activated in IPF and leads to excessive deposition of extracellular matrix including collagen I. We combine molecular biology tools such as cloning with basic cell biology and omics readouts. We also study ex vivo and in vivo models of pulmonary fibrosis. Workers in our lab will have opportunities to meet with patients with pulmonary fibrosis. This provides students with the context for what we do. We believe that this is an important component of the training.Our goal is to design novel therapies for the patients who suffer from pulmonary fibrosis.