Regenerative Medicine
My laboratory studies stem cell biology and regenerative medicine with specific applications in joint injury and disease. Most of my work focuses on developing novel therapies for patients suffering from a common form of arthritis called Osteoarthritis (OA). Osteoarthritis is a chronic degenerative disease that affects approximately 1 in 8 Canadians and about 400,000 Albertans. At present, there is no definitive ‘cure’ for osteoarthritis and no known therapies that can slow the progression, or reverse this painful and debilitating disease. Therefore, it is essential to develop new therapies to combat the disease and give patients a higher quality of life so that they can resume their jobs and normal everyday activities without limited mobility and constant joint pain. My lab specializes in stem cells found within the joint, Stem cells are novel cells that under appropriate stimuli can be reprogrammed to replace and restore damaged tissue such as bone and cartilage in joints. Our research is focused on determining: 1). How these stem cells can be programmed to repair the joint in osteoarthritis patients, and 2.) Can we use these stem cells (or those from an unaffected joint in the body) as a potential treatment in osteoarthritis. This research is essential since a number of companies have emerged over the last 5 years promising stem cell ‘cures’ for diseases such as osteoarthritis. These companies deliver therapies with little to no research supporting their claims and in some cases do more harm than good. My lab is passionate about providing Albertans and all Canadians with proven effective stem cell therapies based on high quality laboratory and clinical evidence.