Skin stem cells: how they grow, remember, and heal
Official title: Regulation of Epidermal Development and Differentiation
Funded at Rockefeller University · NIH-11357797 · Data updated 2026-11-12
This grant studies how skin stem cells stay healthy, heal after injuries, and how inflammation or cancer can disrupt them, with the goal of better treatments for skin conditions.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Rockefeller University NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (New York, United States) |
| Project start | January 1, 1983 |
| Project end | April 30, 2031 |
| Funding year | 2026 |
| Award (this year) | $592,680 |
| NIH project number | 2R01AR031737-44 |
| Project ID | NIH-11357797 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Adults with or at risk for inflammatory skin diseases or skin cancers may benefit from future applications of this research.
✕Less likely to help
People without skin conditions or those not participating in any related future trials may not directly benefit.
What this research studies
Researchers at a renowned university want to understand how skin stem cells sense their environment, change their gene activity, and repair the skin after injury. They will look at how these cells remember past inflammation and how this memory helps or harms responses to future damage. The project uses advanced techniques to map chromatin and gene regulation in human and animal skin models, with a focus on psoriasis-like inflammation and cancer risk. Insights from this work could lead to new therapies for chronic inflammatory skin diseases and skin cancers that affect millions of adults.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, the work could lead to new treatments that promote proper skin healing and reduce inflammation and cancer risk.
How similar studies have gone: Previous work showed that skin stem cells retain long-lasting epigenetic memories influencing responses to inflammation and injury.
Where this research is happening
-
Rockefeller University
New York, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Fuchs, Elaine — Rockefeller University
- Study coordinator: Fuchs, Elaine
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About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page.