Grant: Master's Award: Canada Graduate Scholarships

Complex, but exciting, stem cells help us to better understand the human body and the diseases that may affect it. Specifically, a population known as trophoblast stem (TS) cells, which are only found in the placenta, play an important role in the healthy development of newborns. Since the causes of many pregnancy disorders are unknown, TS cells can help us to explore them. In models representing preeclampsia, a term used to describe pregnancy disorders involving high blood pressure, stem cell antigen-1 (Sca-1) has been used to find and separate TS cells that have an increased ability to multiply rapidly and form cell colonies. Interestingly, cells that do not have Sca-1 start to gain it once they start to form colonies. Sca-1 is found on the surface of cells, and the cells that have it show increased activity of many pathways than those that do not have Sca-1. For instance, acetylcholine activity is increased in TS cells that have Sca-1. It is released in the placenta and has a role in expanding cell populations; this may explain why cells with Sca-1 have a greater ability to multiply. To further explore Sca-1 possible function, I will silence the Sca-1 gene, making it temporarily inactive. I will determine whether Sca-1 cells have an increased ability to develop 3D cell growths, or organoids, compared to silenced Sca-1 cells. This will allow me to determine if there is a relationship between Sca-1 levels in a cell with physical space and organoid size. I will also see whether acetylcholine activity increases or decreases to determine whether its presence is linked with Sca-1. Understanding Sca-1 functions will allow us to better understand TS cells and other stem cell populations in humans.