|
 |
| |
| |
|
|
The multiple types of cells in the blood (lymphocytes, neutrophils, red blood cells) derive from a single hematopoietic stem cell. The process by which the hematopoietic stem cell differentiates into these multiple lineages is orchestrated by transcription factors, cytokines, growth factors, and other extracellular cues. Because the hematopoietic system must rapidly respond to insults, such as infections and trauma, this system is regulated at multiple levels.
Warren Pear seeks to understand these processes and his laboratory is focused on both normal developmental processes and the way that these normal processes go awry to cause blood cell cancers (leukemia).
A major focus of the lab is understanding the function of Notch signaling in hematopoietic development and function. The Notch phenotype was first described in the early 1900s in a strain of Drosophila with “notched” wings. Since then, Notch has been shown to contribute to many developmental processes in both invertebrates and vertebrates. The Pear lab is specifically interested in the function of Notch in hematopoietic cell fate decisions. These include Notch functions in the hematopoietic stem cell (self-renewal versus differentiation) and lymphocytes (T cell commitment, marginal zone B cell development). Notch plays a particularly important function during T cell development where it is required for T cell commitment, alpha beta T cell development, and peripheral T cell differentiation. The Pear lab uses a combination of biochemical, cell culture, and in vivo approaches to understand the functions of Notch signaling in these processes.
Notch signaling is tightly regulated. Failure to maintain this regulation leads to several diseases. In particular, mutations in the Notch gene have been identified in the majority of patients with T cell leukemia. The Pear lab has developed several models to understand the pathogenesis of Notch-associated T cell leukemia and the mechanism by which Notch dysregulation leads to cancer.
Background
Dr. Pear received his undergraduate degree from Williams College. He completed his M.D. training at the University of Rochester and obtained his Pathology training at Brigham and Women's Hospital ( Harvard Medical School ) in Boston. His research training was obtained in two of the most productive and incisive laboratories in lymphoid biology and cancer research: Professor George Klein at the Karolinska Institute (Ph.D.) and Professor David Baltimore at The Rockefeller University and MIT (Postdoctoral Fellowship). Dr. Pear joined the Penn faculty in 1996 where he is currently Associate Professor of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine. |
|
|
| |
| |
| TOP |
|
|
| The University of Pennsylvania Health System © 2007, The Trustees of the University of Pennsylvania. Unauthorized reproduction of this material is strictly prohibited.
|
| Disclaimer | Contact Webmaster |
|
|
|
|
