Sarah Knox, PhD

The Knox Lab is concerned with analyzing the cellular and molecular events underlying the formation of epithelial organs (organogenesis) and their regeneration after injury. We employ multiple tissues (e.g. salivary gland, pancreas, ocular organs) to test three fundamental biological questions: 1) how do peripheral nerves impact epithelial stem cell fate decisions; 2) what are the mechanisms by which neuronal signals pattern organ architecture; and 3) how do immune cells modulate nerve-mediated morphogenesis, repair and regeneration. Understanding the relationships between multiple cell types will lead to new approaches to regenerate damaged tissue and to create new organs.