Bruno Di Stefano | Dissecting mechanisms that govern cellular identity
- Speaker: Bruno Di Stefano, Principal Investigator CPRIT scholar, Baylor College of Medicine
- Talk title: Dissecting mechanisms that govern cellular identity
- Host: Tian Tian
- Date & time: Wednesday 15th December, at 16:00 CET
- Registration
Dr. Bruno Di Stefano is currently an assistant professor and CPRIT scholar at the Stem Cells and Regenerative Medicine Center and the Center for Cell and Gene Therapy at Baylor College of Medicine. As a graduate student in the lab of Dr. Thomas Graf at the Centre for Genomic Regulation, Dr. Di Stefano investigated the mechanisms that control transcription factor-induced cell fate change. He developed the first rapid, ultra-efficient system to reprogram B cells into induced pluripotent stem cells. For his postdoctoral studies, Dr. Di Stefano joined the lab of Dr. Konrad Hochedlinger at Harvard University. There, he identified alternative polyadenylation as a key post-transcriptional mechanism that restricts cell identity. In a parallel line of research, he uncovered that the sequestration of RNAs in cytoplasmic condensates controls self-renewal and differentiation of embryonic and adult stem cell populations. His current research aims to decipher the post-transcriptional mechanisms that control the establishment and maintenance of cellular identity during development and tissue homeostasis. The ultimate goal is to utilize these mechanistic insights to develop new strategies to treat cancer and other complex diseases.
