Research and Education

  • Investigation of multipotent (adult) and pluripotent  (embryonic and induced pluripotent) stem cells for  use in innovative cellular therapies, with a focus on  eye, brain and blood.
  • Analysis of novel combinations of synthetic scaffolds  and stem cell – derived ocular cells for the treatment  of Age-Related Macular Degeneration.
  • Inquiry into new strategies for reprogramming of  adipose stem cells into other cell types useful for  treatment of disease.
  • Development of novel biotechnologies for growth,  differentiation, sorting and delivery of stem cells for  eventual use in the clinic.
  • Interdisciplinary collaborations that combine the  talents of the best and brightest stem cell biologists,  bioengineers, and clinical scientists from around the  world to tackle challenging problems in the study of  aging and regenerative medicine.
  • Develop new cellular therapies for Diabetic Retinopathy,  a leading cause of blindness.

Researchers

Dennis O. Clegg

Dr. Clegg's research focuses on deriving ocular cells from embryonic, induced pluripotent (iPS), and adult stem cells for treating a variety of diseases, including eye maladies such as macular degeneration and diabetic retinopathy. 

Peter Coffey

Dr. Coffey's work focuses on finding the best conditions for transplantation, identifying events that might compromise transplant efficacy, and finding solutions to their deleterious effects, and specifically an assessment of how much visual improvement might be expected from this approach.

James Thomson

Dr. Thomson's specific research interests include: Examining the transcriptional networks in ES cells that mediate self-renewal and commitment to each of the basic lineages of the early embryo; mapping the epigenome of ES cells and their early-differentiated derivatives as a participant in the San Diego Epigenome Center; improving methods for generating human iPS cells, and correcting genetic defects in iPS cells generated from patients with degenerative retinal disease; developing new strategies to convert human pluripotent stem and somatic cells into hematopoietic, vascular, and cardiac progenitor cells; and understanding clocking mechanisms that control developmental rates.