David R. Sherwood

The Sherwood lab is interested in understanding mechanisms that drive dynamic cellular behaviors underlying normal development and human disease. We study 1) How cells invade into tissues, 2) How stem cells interact with their niches, and 3) How cells control and interact with extracellular matrix. Our lab primarily examines C. elegans development, in which simple cellular complexity, amenability to genetics/genomics/transgenics/molecular perturbations, and evolutionary comparisons facilitates powerful insights. One particular emphasis of our work is live-cell imaging, where we watch cellular behaviors and cell-extracellular matrix interactions unfold in real-time to understand their regulation and function.  Cell invasion, stem cell regulation, and cell-matrix interactions are fundamental to development, regeneration, cancer, and aging.  Our work aims to advance our understanding of these fascinating processes and positively influence human health.