Stem cells provide the starting material for every organ and tissue in the body. In order to make most effective use of these cells researchers need to understand the factors that determine stem cell identity and that regulate their ability to form cells that make up different types of tissue.
This project proposes to identify the genes in mice and in humans that determine the identity of stem cells and their ability to replace other tissues. The findings are being disseminated to the research community on a website that will serve as a database of information on stem cells research and provide tools for data analysis.
This project is led by researchers at the Ottawa Health Research Institute and the National Research Council of Canada and is fully integrated with the Stem Cell Network, which is made up of 55 leading stem cell investigators across Canada. The project also works closely with the McGill University and Genome Québec Innovation Centre and Genome British Columbia.