Lawrence Schwartz
E&R Isenberg Professor of Integrated Science
Programmed cell death is a fundamental component of development and homeostasis in virtually all organisms. Defects in the regulation of cell death serves as the basis of many human diseases, including autoimmunity, neurodegeneration and most cancers.
Current Research
Our lab focuses the molecular mechanisms that mediate programmed cell death during development and pathogenesis. We exploit an invertebrate model (metamorphosis in holometabolous insects) to identify novel genes and molecular pathways that mediate cell death and then extend these insights into vertebrate models, including human disease.
Learn more at www.bio.umass.edu/biology/about/directories/faculty/lawrence-m-schwartz
Academic Background
- AB. Northwestern University, 1976
- PhD University of Washington, Seattle, 1982
- Postdoctoral training: 1982-1984 University of Washington, Seattle; 1984-1987
- University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill; 1995-1996 Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Sciences
Sheel, A, Shao, R., Brown, C., Johnson, J., Hamilton, A., Oppenheimer, Tsuji, J., J., Smith, W., Visconti, P., Markstein, M., and Schwartz, L.M. (2020) Acheron/LARP6 is a Novel Survival Protein that Controls Programmed Cell Death During Development. Frontiers in Cell and Developmental Biology, 8:622
Tsuji, J., Thomson, T., Theurkauf, W.E., Weng, Z., and Schwartz, L.M. (2020) Differential Regulation of Somatic piRNAs and Transposon Expression During Skeletal Muscle Atrophy and Programmed Cell Death. Plos Genetics. Physiol Genomics. 2020 Sep 14.
Schwartz, L.M. (2019) Skeletal Muscles Do Not Undergo Apoptosis During Either Atrophy or Programmed Cell Death- Rejection of The Myonuclear Domain Hypothesis. Frontiers in Physiology, 9:1887
Tsuji, J., Thomson, T., Chan, E., Brown, CK, Oppenheimer, J., Dong, X., Theurkauf, W., Weng, Z. and Schwartz, LM (201x) Molecular Pathways Controlling Skeletal Muscle Atrophy and Programmed Cell Death. submitted
Shao, R., Taylor, S.L., Oh, D.S., and Schwartz, L.M. (2015) Vascular Heterogeneity: The Role of YKL-40 in Glioblastoma Vascularization. Oncotarget, 6:40507-18
Hyldahl RD, Schwartz LM, Clarkson PM. (2013) NF-kB Functions in Primary Pericyte Cells in a Cell- and Non-Cell Autonomous Manner to Affect Myogenesis. Muscle and Nerve, 47:522-531.
Fahrbach, S.E., Nambu, J.R. and Schwartz, L.M. (2012) Programmed cell death in insect neuromuscular systems during metamorphosis. in Insect Molecular Biology and Biochemistry, L.I. Gilbert editor, pp 419-449.
Schwartz, L.M., Kosz, L., and Kay, B.K. 1990. Gene Activation is Required for Developmentally Programmed Cell Death. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA, 87: 6594-6598.
