HHNS Seminar Series: The role of fibro/adipogenic progenitors in radiation-induced skeletal muscle fibrosis
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The Department of Human Health and Nutritional Sciences presents Dr. Michael Di Lisio, associate professor in the School of Human Kinetics and Department of Cellular and Molecular Medicine at the University of Ottawa, for its Seminar Speaker Series.
Biography:
Dr. De Lisio is a molecular exercise physiologist with a particular interest in stem cell biology. These research interests are derived from doctoral training in Kinesiology at McMaster University under the supervision of Dr. Gianni Parise, and his postdoctoral training in molecular muscle physiology at the Beckman Institute at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. During his doctoral training, Dr. De Lisio undertook the first studies examining the effects of exercise on bone marrow stem cells, and discovered that exercise protects bone marrow-derived cells from a high dose of radiation, and enhances recovery from bone marrow transplantation. His postdoctoral training, focused on the molecular interactions between muscle-derived mesenchymal stromal cells (MSCs) and myogenic stem cells with aging and exercise. These collaborative projects resulted in Dr. De Lisio being awarded prestigious fellowships to support his doctoral and postdoctoral research, as well as several peer-reviewed publications. Following completion of his training, Dr. De Lisio established the Exercise and Stem Cell Physiology Lab (ESC Lab) at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign where he held an Assistant Professor position from 2013-2016 prior to moving his lab to the University of Ottawa in 2016. The mission of the laboratory is to optimize endogenous stem cell populations through lifestyle modifications to maintain tissue regenerative capacity throughout the lifespan. Work in the ESC lab is focused on answering two main questions: (1) What are the external cues that regulate the cellular composition of the stem cell microenvironment, and (2) How do changes in the cellular composition of the stem cell niche regulate stem cell function? To answer these questions, the ESC lab takes an interdisciplinary, man to molecule approach combining in vitro, animal, and human models, and applies techniques from molecular biology to systems physiology.