Dr. Du's research is centered on pathophysiology of hematologic diseases such as bone marrow (BM) failure and leukemia. We investigate the mechanism of hematopoietic stem cell (HSC) mobilization and BM niche engraftment as well as the factors implicated in cell proliferation and apoptosis. Our studies have identified functional interactions between certain factors implicated in cell polarity, adhesion/migration, stem cell metabolism and aging; and have led to numerous peer-reviewed scientific papers in high-impact scientific journals, including Blood, JCI, Nat Communications, Leukemia and so on. Our current research interests include: 1) Study the crosstalk between DDR and immune responses in leukemogenesis; 2) Investigate the systemic immune effects of persistent DNA damage during aging; 3) Understand role leukemia-associated macrophage (LAMs) in leukemogenesis; 4) Define a novel paracrine Wnt5a-Prox1 signaling axis in regulating HSC regeneration under conditions of injury and aging; and 5) Explore the role of major Fanconi anemia pathway in hematopoiesis.
In our research projects, we utilize cellular, genetic and molecular techniques to identify and characterize critical pathways that regulate hematopoietic stem cell functions using knockout (KO) mice and xenotransplant models.