Laurence Daheron, Ph.D.
Instructor
Center for Regenerative Medicine
185 Cambridge Street
Boston, MA 02114
Phone: 617-724-0237
ldaheron@partners.org

Developing the use of human embryonic stem (ES) cell as a source for tissue engineering and cell therapy.

Dr. Laurence Daheron is the Director of the Human Embryonic Stem Cell Core facility. She joined the Center in January 2006 after finishing her post-doctoral fellowship in George Daley’s laboratory at Children’s Hospital. There, she studied the mechanisms of hESC self-renewal and the signaling pathways associated with the maintenance of pluripotency. She demonstrated that hESC self-renewal is independent of the LIF-STAT3 pathway and unveiled the role of Oct-4 and Nanog in the maintenance of hESC pluripotency.

Human embryonic stem cells can proliferate indefinitely in culture and maintain their capacity to differentiate into any cell type of the body. They hold great promise for future cell therapies, and discovery of novel compounds for the treatment of human disease. The results achieved in human ES cell research during the last few years demonstrate rapid progress and the increased importance of human ES cells in both basic research and the long-term future of modern medicine.

The primary mission of the hES cell Core is to provide investigators from MGH and the Harvard Stem Cell Institute with guidance and training for the use of human ESC. This includes providing assistance in the procedure to start hESC research (policies and guidelines), as well as offering one-on-one trainings on hESC culture and characterization. Another mission for the Core is to test new protocols and develop new tools to facilitate the use of these cells.

Research focusing on the derivation of endothelial cells and mesenchymal stem cells from hESC is also conducted within the Core.

The hESC Core is exclusively supported with non-federal funds allowing researchers to work with cell lines that are not in the NIH registry.