Accredited translational medicine centre Human renal fibrotic disease: Translational research at the Center for Cell Biology and Cancer Research (CCBCR), Albany Medical College, Albany, NY

Publication date: January 2015 Source:New Horizons in Translational Medicine, Volume 2, Issue 2 Author(s): Paul J. Higgins , Aamir Shahzad , Jeffrey Kennedy Translational studies conducted in the Center for Cell Biology & Cancer Research at the Albany Medical College integrate the discovery of basic mechanisms underlying the development of human fibrotic disease with in vivo interventional strategies and tissue repair outcomes in animal models. This structured research program is expected to lead to the clinical adaptation of novel therapies specifically directed to the control of pathologically-relevant profibrotic genes in several organ systems. Perhaps the most mature, clinically-relevant, multidisciplinary effort focuses on molecular events underlying the pathophysiology of the renal fibrotic response to tissue injury. This program involves a network of collaborating urological surgeons, nephrologists, graduate students, pathologists, residents, transplant surgeons, basic scientists and molecular biologists and is built on a highly-collaborative framework that fosters translational interactions. This cooperative enterprise resulted in a new appreciation for the complexity of the TGF-β1-activated pathways leading to fibrotic gene expression in an in vivo model of renal injury that mimics obstructive uropathy in humans. Moreover, we have uncovered new, translationally-relevant and therapeutically-accessible, molecular targets. These are the focus of current ...
Source: New Horizons in Translational Medicine - Category: Research Source Type: research