Dr Sue Mei Lim, BComm/BSc (Hons), PhD

Embryonic stem cell differentiation lab

Research Interests

Mouse embryonic stem cells, Mixl1, Mesendoderm specification, Pancreatic endoderm differentiation.

Project summary

Currently my research interests are focused on the efficient production of pancreatic progenitor cells, using a mouse reporter Pdx1 GFP/w ES cell line. The experiments will address:
1. Methods of differentiation for the proliferation and branching morphogenesis of Pdx1+ pancreatic progenitors.
2. Analysis of factors known to regulate and influence the differentiation of Pdx1+ progenitors into exocrine and endocrine cell lineages and to evaluate their in vivo functional potential.
It is hoped that these studies will assist in the understanding of pancreatic cell fate in the mammalian embryo, and further efforts towards discovering therapeutic applications in the treatment of type 1 diabetes.

Select Publications

Refereed journals
Lim, S. M., Pereira, L., Wong, M. S., Hirst, C. E., Van Vranken, B. E., Pick, M., Trounson, A., Elefanty, A. G. Stanley, E. G. (2009). Enforced expression of Mixl1 during mouse ES cell differentiation suppresses hematopoietic mesoderm and promotes endoderm formation. Stem Cells. 27: 363-374.

Costa, M., Dottori, M., Sourris, K., Jamshidi, P., Hatzistavrou, T., Davis, R., Azzola, L., Jackson, S., Lim, S. M., Pera, M., Elefanty, A. G. Stanley, E. G. (2007). A method for genetic modification of human embryonic stem cells using electroporation. Nat. Protocols. 2: 792-796.