The Regenerative and Movement Biology (RMB) lab is a multidisciplinary and interactive group of dedicated scientists keen on translating basic research findings into therapeutically applicable treatments. We work at the intersection of molecular and cellular biology, cell-based and gene therapies, tissue engineering, and cellular agriculture. As such, the lab concentrates on a wide range of research objectives, employing a battery of cutting-edge methods in biology to address experimental goals spanning various research domains and fields.
As our main research model, we focus on skeletal muscle, a soft tissue that comprises around 40% of normal human body mass. This tissue is composed of multinucleated muscle fibers that contract to generate locomotion and mononucleated cells, most notably stem cells known as satellite cells, that can regenerate the tissue upon injury or disease. Satellite cell regenerative propensity is derailed in multiple diseases and effective curative treatments are lacking. The primary long-term goal of our laboratory is directed towards developing novel cell-based and gene therapy approaches to treat degenerative loss of muscle mass. To this end, we utilize direct reprogramming to convert somatic cells into regenerative-competent and expandable myogenic stem and progenitor cells suitable for potential therapies. Separately, given our expertise in myogenic cell line cultivation, our research group further explores means to reduce costs of cultivated meat production via generation of unique muscle stem cell lines from domesticated animals, which can be used as a future source for sustainable food.