Dr. Pekka Katajisto is an Associate Professor at the University of Helsinki and at the Karolinska Institutet. His laboratory studies both stem cell intrinsic and extrinsic mechanisms altering tissue renewal capacity, and how such mechanisms ultimately result in the functional decline we recognize as aging. They mainly focus on the intestinal epithelium, studying asymmetric cell division, cellular metabolism and cell fate, and the stem cell niche.

An In-Vitro Model of Human Neurulation – A new reproducible, self-organizing model of human neurulation has been developed and used to model the early development of Huntington’s disease.

3D Printed Organ Building Blocks – Researchers have developed a biomanufacturing method using patient-specific organoids as building blocks to develop organ-specific tissues at therapeutic scales.

Engineering a T Cell Therapy for Cancer – To increase the levels of invariant natural killer T (iNKT) cells in cancer patients, scientists generated HSC-engineered iNKT cells which were able to suppress tumor growth in a mouse model.

CAR T-Cell Therapy Harnessed to Treat Heart Disease – While T cell immunotherapy is typically used to treat certain cancers, investigators repurposed the technology to target cardiac fibrosis in mice.

Photo Reference: Courtesy of Dr. Pekka Katajisto

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