The purpose of this RFA is to foster research on lung stem cell biology and cell based therapy for lung diseases. This program will support regular research grants (R01s), which include collaborations between basic scientists and clinical investigators who will explore together clinically relevant questions, thereby enabling basic science findings to be more readily translated into studies that investigate the potential of cell based therapy for preventing and treating lung disease. An important goal of this program is to provide the basic knowledge necessary to eventually develop safe and efficacious clinical protocols on lung cell based therapy.

A collaborative effort between the following labs has been established to investigate lung stem cell biology in the context of cell-based therapy:

Jeffrey A. Whitsett, M.D.
Children’s Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati
Transcription factor regulation of lung progenitor cells in developing and adult lung

Barry R. Stripp, Ph.D.
Duke University
Bronchiolar stem cells and their molecular regulation

Carla F. Kim, Ph.D.
Children’s Hospital Boston, Harvard University
Bronchioalveolar stem cells in lung and lung cancer

Ed Ingenito, M.D.
Brigham and Women's Hospital
Cell based therapy for lung disease

Asrar Malik, Ph.D.
University of Chicago
Endothelial progenitor cells

Judith Shizuru, Ph.D.
Stanford University
Transplantation of endothelial progenitor cells

Mark Hershenson, M.D.
University of Michigan
Mesenchymal stem cells in pediatric lung disease

Carol J. Blaisdell, M.D.
NHLBI, National Heart, Lung and Blood Instititue
NHLBI perspective on funding for lung stem cells and regenerative medicine