Grant: Project Grant

Bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD) is a chronic lung disease that follows ventilator and oxygen treatment for acute failure to breathe in babies born very prematurely (24-28 weeks of gestation instead of 40). BPD is a major complication of prematurity with a short- and long-term burden for infants and their families. Damage to the still developing lung stops the normal formation of the alveoli (the air sacs in the lung that allows the uptake of oxygen and release of waste carbon dioxide). Currently there is no treatment for this disease. Our laboratory is seeking new medications to either protect or heal the damaged lung. Our body contains stem cells, a pool of cells that have the ability to become any type of cell (i.e. bone, muscle, liver or blood cell, etc.). Stem cells can be found in the bone marrow but also in the umbilical cord (UC) of babies. UC is discarded after birth, but can be safely collected and stored without risk for the mother or the baby. Our lab was one of the first to show that stem cells from the UC can repair lungs in a model of BPD induced in newborn rats by exposure to high oxygen concentrations. In this proposal, we will explore if we can identify the UC stem cells with the best repair potential by applying a new technology to sort and label individual cells. Our research could lead to new treatments to improve the outcome of premature babies. Ultimately, our findings may extend to the treatment of other lung diseases that currently lack efficient treatments such as COVID-19 related acute respiratory distress syndrome.