Cell Differentiation

We are also curious about how gene expression cascades control cell differentiation, in conjunction with miRNA networks, particularly in adipogenesis.  Our method of investigating obesity and diabetes development has been to analyze adipocytes from healthy vs patients through bioinformatics analysis. We plan to apply our recently developed iPSC technologies, with knocked-in biomarkers using our superior fluorescent proteins (FPs), to follow fat cell development.

One of our aims is to create brown fat cells (BFCs, the good fat cells) from patient-specific iPSCs that can be ultimately applied to patients. We use similar strategies to study how iPSCs differentiate into neuronal cells, cardiomyocytes, hepatocytes, muscle cells, etc. Recently, we showed that stem cells can be turned into platelets on a scale potentially suitable for clinical applications.

Jiwu Wang, PhD