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Molecular Embryology Laboratory

Dr Adam Hart

Dr Adam Hart
Email: adam.hart@med.monash.edu.au

Main research areas:
Molecular regulation of pluripotency and lineage specification during development and tumorigenesis. 
Adult stem cells and tissue regeneration.
Cellular and molecular mechanisms of mesoderm - blood cell development.

Research Projects

In 2008 the laboratory will have a position for a PhD student who is interested in stem cell biology and tissue regeneration. This project will examine the role of the Nanog gene, which is required for the maintenance of pluripotency in embryonic stem cells, in adult stem cells during tissue regeneration and repair. It will use mouse and cell culture models and will require the student to develop expertise in flow cytometry as well as biochemistry and molecular biology.

There is also an opportunity for an honors student to conduct a research project in the laboratory. This project will involve embryonic stem cell and embryoid body differentiation. Cellular and molecular analyses will be used to assess the function of selected homeobox transcription factors.

Pluripotent stem cells in the mouse

Embryonic stem (ES) cells are isolated from the pre-implantation embryo and are maintained indefinitely in-vitro using culture media supplemented with Leukaemia inhibitory factor (LIF). In the mouse, ES-like cells can also be isolated from embryonic and neonatal gonads, from germ cell tumors such as teratocarcinomas and from the adult testis of genetically manipulated mice. The capacity of ES cells to self-renew and, under specific conditions, give rise to all adult cell types, a property known as "pluripotency", is the key to unlocking the potential of cell based therapies.

Experimental manipulation of embryonic stem cells

The goal of our research is to achieve a working model of the cellular and molecular mechanisms underlying stem cell self-renewal and differentiation into specific cell lineages. We utilize transgenic and gene targeted stem cell lines and mice to dissect the gene networks that control these processes in the early mouse embryo.

Recent Publications

Glaser S, Metcalf D, Wu L, Hart AH, DiRago L, Mifsud S, D'Amico A, Dagger S, Campo C, Chan AC, Izon DJ, Robb L. Enforced expression of the homeobox gene Mixl1 impairs hematopoietic differentiation and results in acute myeloid leukemia. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2006 Oct 31;103(44):16460-5.
Forrai, A., Boyle, K., Hart, A.H., Hartley, L., Rakar, S., Willson, T.A., Simpson, K.M., Roberts, A.W, Alexander W.S., Voss, A.K., and Robb, L. SOCS3 regulates the balance between self-renewal and differentiation in murine embryonic stem cells. (2005) Stem Cells Mar;24(3):604-14.
Hart, A.H., Hartley, L., Parker, K., Ibrahim, M., Looijenga, L.H.J., Pauchnik, M., Chow, C-W., & Robb, L. The Pluripotency Homeobox Gene NANOG is expressed in Human Germ Cell Tumours. (2005) CANCER. 104(10). 2092-2098.
Hart AH, Hartley L, Ibrahim M, Robb L. Identification, cloning and expression analysis of the pluripotency promoting Nanog genes in mouse and human. Dev Dyn. 2004 May;230(1):187-98. Hart AH, Hartley L, Sourris K, Stadler ES, Li R, Stanley EG, Tam PP, Elefanty AG, Robb L. Mixl1 is required for axial mesendoderm morphogenesis and patterning in the murine embryo. Development. 2002 Aug;129(15):3597-608.