Center for Cardiovascular and Muscular Diseases CCMD
Distinguished Cardiovascular and Muscular Diseases Seminar Series
Speaker
Helen Blau, PhD
Donald E and Delia B Baxter Foundation Professor
Director, Baxter Laboratory for Stem Cell Biology
Stanford University School of Medicine
Seminar Abstract: Blau discovered a pivotal molecular determinant of stem cell and tissue dysfunction with aging, 15-hydroxyprostaglandin dehydrogenase. This enzyme, which she termed a ‘gerozyme’, modulates Prostaglandin E2 levels and can be targeted therapeutically with a small molecule to promote muscle and cartilage regeneration and rejuvenation. This treatment holds promise as a therapy for sarcopenia and for osteoarthritis.