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Thomas Jefferson University is expanding and empowering its stem cell research program with a new academic department at Jefferson Medical College: Stem Cell Biology and Regenerative Medicine.

The Kimmel Cancer Center at Jefferson is already home to the Stem Cell Biology and Regenerative Medicine Research Center, which is led by Michael P. Lisanti, M.D., Ph.D., Professor of Cancer Biology. Dr. Lisanti will be the chairman of the new department, and will hold a joint appointment as Professor of Cancer Biology and Medical Oncology.

“Our goal as a new department is to energize and empower the existing stem cell research community at Jefferson and to expand it by recruiting new faculty members,” Dr. Lisanti said. “We plan to collaborate and form scientific relationships with many departments across Jefferson. This department will be a pathway towards new grants and educational opportunities.”

According to Dr. Lisanti, the department will have two main focuses. The first is the use of stem cells as therapy for a variety of diseases, such as atherosclerosis, diabetes and neurogenerative disorders, among others. The second focus is on cancer stem cells, identifying cancer stem cell markers and cancer stem cell treatment targets.

“We want to identify and develop new biomarkers to perform patient stratification so that we can do early detection and potentially find out who might benefit from chemotherapy and/or radiation,” Dr. Lisanti explained.

“Our Stem Cell Biology and Regenerative Medicine department will serve as a catalyst in clinical translational science initiatives across a wide array of disciplines at Jefferson,” said Mark Tykocinski, M.D., dean of Jefferson Medical College. “This department will also serve as a hub for our collaborations with other stem cell research partners, both nationally and internationally.”

Faculty members for the department include Gloria Bonuccelli, Ph.D.; Franco Capozza, Ph.D.; Remedios Castello-Cros, Ph.D.; Philippe G. Frank, Ph.D.; Jean-Francois Jasmin, Ph.D.; Isabelle Mercier, Ph.D.; Marco Prisco, Ph.D.; and Chenguang Wang, Ph.D. All are currently members of the Cancer Biology department.