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Studying lung cell function in health and disease
Dr. Tschumperlin's lab studies how cells sense, respond to and shape the mechanical environment of the lung, with the goal of developing new ways to prevent or treat diseases such as pulmonary fibrosis, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and asthma. Above: A lung organoid formed from human bronchial epithelium, fibroblasts and endothelium.
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Targeting myofibroblast pathways
The lab's team is discovering novel ways to regulate the biology of myofibroblasts to stop or reverse the lung tissue scarring they cause in pulmonary fibrosis. Above: Human lung fibroblasts depositing collagen (red) into the extracellular matrix.
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Cell communication in health and disease
The Tschumperlin lab studies the interactions between cells that help maintain homeostasis in healthy lungs and are disrupted in injury or disease. Above: Delicate alveolar architecture of the lung as seen by immunofluorescence imaging of laminin.
Overview
The Tissue Repair and Mechanobiology Laboratory of Daniel J. Tschumperlin, Ph.D., at Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, investigates diseases of the respiratory system with a focus on the cellular and molecular mechanisms of lung repair, remodeling and fibrosis. These processes are central to a variety of lung disorders, including pulmonary fibrosis, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and asthma.
The lung is exquisitely designed to support life through its immense yet exceedingly thin gas exchange surface. Lung function depends on the interactions of numerous cell types within a delicate architectural framework. The Tissue Repair and Mechanobiology Laboratory investigates how injury and remodeling disturb the matrix architecture and mechanical forces present in the healthy lung, and how the interplay among the mechanical environment, cellular signaling and tissue remodeling result in organ dysfunction.
By understanding how cells of the lung sense, respond to and shape the mechanical environment of the lung in health and disease, Dr. Tschumperlin's research team is working toward developing new approaches to prevent or reverse aberrant remodeling and lung dysfunction.
Focus areas include:
- Mechanobiology of pulmonary fibrosis. Dr. Tschumperlin's research team is defining the changes in tissue stiffness that accompany pulmonary fibrosis and studying the signaling mechanisms that regulate it.
- Discovering novel regulators of myofibroblast biology. The lab's research is aimed at discovering new regulatory pathways that control the activation of myofibroblasts — the cells that cause fibrosis.
- Cell-cell communication and lung repair. The lab is investigating how optimal lung structure and function are maintained and restored after injury through coordinated interactions of multiple cell types, including epithelial, endothelial and fibroblast.
Affiliations
Dr. Tschuperlin's lab is affiliated with these Mayo Clinic research areas:
About Dr. Tschumperlin
Daniel J. Tschumperlin, Ph.D., is vice chair of Mayo Clinic's Department of Physiology and Biomedical Engineering. He also holds a joint appointment in the Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine.