Our laboratory has a very general interest it utilizing planarians as a model system to understand the life history of an animal that is effectively immortal. Members of the group are involved in projects investigating how positional information is specified during regeneration, how neoblast stem cells are maintained and differentiate, and how planarians homeostasis mechanisms regulate their size in response to changing nutrient status. We are currently developing approaches that use next generation sequencing to take a systems approach to understanding planarian life history. Finally in collaboration with chemists at the University of Nottingham we wish to utilize planarians as an in vivo screening platform for naturally occurring small molecules that can affect proliferation and stem cell differentiation.

Web site
http://www.aboobakerlab.com

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