Overview
Functional genomics of type 1 diabetes
T1D afflicts 0.3 - 0.6 per cent of North Americans. Despite availability of therapeutic insulin the disease is associated with significant morbidity. T1D is a multifactorial disease caused by genetic variation at multiple loci, few of them identified at the molecular level. The objective of our Type 1 diabetes (T1D) research program is to understand the autoimmune response that results in the death of b-islet cells, and to identify the genes that control this process in mouse models and in human patients.
Subversion of survival and developmental pathways in acute lymphoblastic leukemia:
(joint projects of Drs. Jayne Danska and Cynthia Guidos) How do normal hematopoietic cells become abnormal leukemic stem cells? These mechanisms are currently poorly understood, and reflect multiple genetic alterations that perturb proliferation, differentiation, programmed cell death, and self-renewal pathways. The major objective of Drs. Danska and Guidos research program is to understand these disrupted molecular pathways and position the information within the cellular and developmental context of leukemogenesis.