Grant: Doctoral: Vanier Canada Graduate Scholarships

After injury, organs in the body attempt to repair themselves through restoration of normal tissue structure and function, which involves complex interactions between stem cells, inflammatory cells, and their environment. However, chronic injury or dysregulated healing progress results in the common end-point of organ scarring, which is a combination of nonfunctional cells and a scarred matrix. Organ scarring results in a high frequency of morbidity and causes nearly 45% of all deaths in industrialized nations' mortality. Population ageing has also caused the number of patients affected by scarring to increase, thus raising its profile among clinicians and industry. Currently, no efficient anti scarring therapeutics exists, however, recent evidence in different tissues indicates that some reversibility can occur, even in advanced stages of disease. Therefore, a more detailed understanding of the specific cellular mechanisms present during efficient tissue regeneration and of how they go awry in scarring disease will likely inform therapeutic approaches. In 2010, we identified a stem cell population that plays a major role in tissue regeneration and scar development. Herein, using different animal models, we are going to combine our 10 years of experience with the most advanced technologies in cellular and molecular biology to understand the detailed interactions of these stem cells with other cells involved in tissue regeneration and scar development. This knowledge will allow us to determine the detailed mechanisms governing cell fate and function, furthering therapeutic approaches to delay scar progression or accelerate its resolution.