Gender	Male
E-mail	michael.rendl@mssm.edu
Education and Training	M.D., University of Vienna
	Postdoctoral Fellowship, Rockefeller University
	Postdoctoral Fellowship, Medical University of Vienna
Awards	2002 - 2004 Schrodinger Fellow of the Austrian Science Fund
	2001 - 2002 Max Kade Fellow of the Austrian Academy of Sciences
	1999 AESCA Award for Dermatological Research

Department Affiliation
Developmental and Regenerative Biology
Black Family Stem Cell Institute

Education and Training	M.D., University of Vienna
	Postdoctoral Fellowship, Rockefeller University
	Postdoctoral Fellowship, Medical University of Vienna

Specific Clinical/Research Interests: Cell fate specification of stem cell niche cells in the hair morphogenesis model; stem cell activation by dermal papilla niche cells during hair formation and regeneration

Current Students: Su-Yi Tsai

Postdoctoral Fellows: Carlos Clavel, Laura Grisanti

Research Personnel: Soo Jeong Kim

Summary of Research Studies:
Cell communication between tissue stem cells and their cellular microenvironment within so-called stem cell niches is critical for stem cell self-renewal, differentiation and thus overall tissue homeostasis. But how these specialized niche cells acquire their inductive properties generally remains unknown. The focus of the lab is to understand the general molecular mechanisms of niche cell fate specification that is required for stem cell activation and tissue formation. We use hair follicle development as an attractive model system where a stem cell niche is formed when specialized mesenchymal cells, called dermal papilla (DP) cells, send cues to multipotent long-lived epithelial stem cells, thereby regulating their proliferation and progenitor cell fate, both during embryonic follicle morphogenesis and during adult follicle regeneration. We have recently developed transgenic mice that enabled us to isolate pure DP cells and to characterize their molecular signature. Cell fate manipulation either by cytokine activation in vitro or by gene ablation in a novel in vitro/in vivo hybrid knockout assay then allowed us for the first time to functionally assess their stem cell-activating, hair inducing properties. The goal now is to systematically employ these tools to identify the specific molecular events that specify DP character that is crucial for regulating epithelial stem cells. These experiments will identify key mechanisms in the formation of the hair follicle stem cell niche. Such insights will have also the potential to advance our understanding of other developmental systems where mesenchymal-epithelial communication takes place within a stem cell microenvironment. In addition, these studies could lead to therapeutic strategies to regenerate hair and other tissues.

Rendl M, Pollak L, Fuchs E. BMP signaling in dermal papilla cells is required for their hair follicle inductive properties.. Genes and Development 2008;(22): 543-557.

Nguyen H, Rendl M, Fuchs E. Tcf3 governs stem cell features and represses cell fate determination in skin.. Cell 2006;(127): 171-183.

Rendl M, Lewis L, Fuchs E. Molecular dissection of mesenchymal-epithelial interactions in the hair follicle.. PLoS Biology 2005; 3(11): e331.

Tumbar T, Guasch G, Greco V, Blanpain C, Lowry WE, Rendl M, Fuchs E. Defining the epithelial stem cell niche in skin.. Science 2004;(303): 359-363.