University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA
Director: Neil Kaplowitz, M.D.
Co-director: Hidekazu Tsukamoto, D.V.M., Ph.D.
Administrator: Karen Betz
Center Focus
The goal of the University of Southern California Center for Liver Diseases (USC-LDRC) is to foster and facilitate interdisciplinary research in digestive disorders. The Biomedical Research Base consists of four major themes supported by 27 peer-reviewed grants. Members from all departments of the School of Medicine and School of Pharmacy participate in this center. The four themes are (1) Membrane and Intracellular Transport; (2) Viral hepatitis and liver cancer, (3) Hepatotoxicity, inflammation, and fibrosis; and (4) Hepatic metabolism. This research base is supported by three core facilities, as listed below. The cores provide a wide variety of services for new or experienced investigators and also serve as educational resources. Cultured rat and mouse nonparenchymal cells, hepatocytes, and various cell lines as well as human hepatocytes and zone-enriched cells are provided to Center investigators. Other services include the provision of domain-enriched liver plasma membranes, subcellular organelles such as mitochondria and microsomes, and more refined fractionation analyses including pulse-chase methodology. A Xenopus oocyte preparation and year-round frog maintenance facility are provided by the Molecular Biology Core which also provides oligonucleotides synthesis, plasmid preparation, and gene expression techniques. In addition, the Center supports a pilot and feasibility program. The USC-LDRC is dedicated to technology transfer from the bench to the bedside in understanding, preventing, and treating liver diseases and other digestive diseases.
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Core Facilities
- Molecular Biology Core
- Cell Culture Core
- Subcellular Organelle Core
For further information, visit the USC-CLD homepage.
