Presentation
Organizer: IRB BioMed Seminars
Speaker: Dr. Vittorio Sebastiano - Associate Professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology (Reproductive and Stem Cell Biology), Stanford School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, United States.
Date: Monday, 28 November 2022 at 11AM
Place: Felix Serratosa Hall, Parc Científic de Barcelona
Host: Manuel Serrano, PhD - Group Leader - Cellular Plasticity and Disease - IRB Barcelona - Aging and Metabolism Programme
Abstract:
Aging is characterized by a gradual loss of function occurring at the molecular, cellular, tissue and systemic levels. At the chromatin level, progressive accumulation of epigenetic errors eventually leads to a broad spectrum of outcomes including aberrant gene regulation, stem cell exhaustion, senescence, and deregulated cell/tissue homeostasis. Notably, while aging affects the single individuals of a given species, it does not affect the species as a whole, and no vertical transmission of parents’ age has ever been observed.
His hypothesis is that embryonic development and reproductive biology hold the secret to prevent or even reverse cellular aging and hence, tissue and systemic aging.
Based on this hypothesis, the focus of the Sebastiano Lab is to study and model human embryonic/reproductive development, dissect its principles, and apply them to somatic cells as a potential solution to combat aging-associated diseases.
They utilize two complementary approaches. First, through the cell autonomous rejuvenation of cells using a technology (Epigenetic Reprogramming of Aging, ERA) that the lab has pioneered (Sarkar et al., 2020); second, by in vitro engineering thymic and gonadal tissues as a potential solution to provide systemic enhanced health span to elderly individuals.
IRB BioMed Seminars
IMPORTANT: For attendees outside the PCB community you must register at least 24h before the seminar.