Biomedical Research Core Center on Skin Stem Cells

描述(申请人提供)：在这份申请中，我们建议在哥伦比亚大学内科和外科学院皮肤科创建一个多学科的皮肤干细胞生物学中心。该中心将建立在皮肤科基础科学研究组(BSRG)现有研究成果的基础上，该研究组致力于了解干细胞对皮肤正常和异常生长的贡献，确定它们在维持皮肤上皮细胞动态平衡中的作用，以及它们在疾病状态发病机制中的作用。该部门此前在六名杰出研究人员的实验室建立了一个积极而有力的研究计划，专注于与角质形成细胞生物学相关的两个主要主题：干细胞和皮肤癌。我们已经确定了两位优秀的初级学院候选人，瓦伦蒂娜·格雷科博士和埃琳娜·埃日科娃博士，他们都是洛克菲勒大学Elaine Fuchs博士的国际知名皮肤生物学实验室的博士后研究员。我们已经向这两位候选人发出了正式邀请，让他们加入皮肤病学系，并联合任命他们进入病理学系。我们计划利用PSO通过NIAMS提供的资源，根据ARRA指导方针，在未来12-18个月内支持这两名优秀初级教员候选人的招聘。Greco博士和Ezhkova博士的研究项目的加入将加强我们研究项目中的干细胞部分，从而使我们的部门能够为建立一个多学科研究人员社区做出贡献，该社区专注于加强当前对皮肤病基本生物学的了解这一挑战。这一倡议将允许这两位真正杰出的研究人员植入我们现有的干细胞计划。他们将获得所需的密集和持续的职业发展支持，以确保他们成熟为独立的调查人员，并拥有自己的同行评审资金，作为哥伦比亚大学皮肤干细胞生物学中心的一部分。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): In this application, we propose to create a multi-disciplinary Center for Skin Stem Cell Biology based within the Department of Dermatology at the College of Physicians & Surgeons at Columbia University. This center will build on the existing research excellence within the Basic Science Research Group (BSRG) based in the Department of Dermatology that is dedicated to understanding the contributions of stem cells to the normal and abnormal growth ofthe skin, by defining their role in maintaining epithelial homeostasis, as well as the manner in which they contribute to the pathogenesis of disease states. The department has previously established an active and robust research program in the labs of six outstanding research investigators focused on two major themes related to keratinocyte biology: stem cells and skin cancer. We have identified two superb junior Faculty candidates, Drs. Valentina Greco and Elena Ezhkova, both of whom are post-doctoral fellows in the internationally renowned skin biology laboratory of Dr. Elaine Fuchs at the Rockefeller University. We have extended formal offers to these two candidates to join the Faculty ofthe Department of Dermatology with joint appointments in the Department of Pathology. We plan to utilize the resources provided by this PSO through NIAMS to support the recruitment of these two stellar junior faculty candidates in the next 12-18 months, in accordance with the ARRA guidelines. The addition of the research programs of Drs. Greco and Ezhkova will strengthen the stem cell component of our research programs, thereby enabling our Department to contribute to building a community of multidisciplinary researchers focusing on the challenge of enhancing current understanding ofthe basic biology of skin diseases. This initiative will permit these two truly outstanding investigators to be engrafted into our existing stem cell programs. They will be given the .intensive and sustained career development support needed to assure their maturation into independent investigators with their own peer-reviewed funding as part of the Center for Skin Stem Cell Biology at Columbia University.