Rita Perlingeiro, PhD

Associate Professor of Medicine
Lillehei Endowed Scholar, Lillehei Heart Institute

Dr. Rita Perlingeiro received her undergraduate degree in Biochemistry and Pharmacy from the Federal University of Santa Maria, in Santa Maria, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil, and her M.S. and Ph.D from the University of Campinas in Campinas, Sao Paulo, Brazil. She completed her postdoctoral training in Stem Cell Biology at the Whitehead Institute, MIT, in Cambridge, MA, and joined ViaCell, Inc. as a Senior Research Scientist before starting her own laboratory in the Department of Developmental Biology at UT Southwestern Medical Center in 2003. Currently, Dr. Perlingeiro is an Associate Professor in the Department of Medicine, Division of Cardiology, and member of the Lillehei Heart Institute.

In 2008 Dr. Perlingeiro and colleagues published a seminal article, “Functional skeletal muscle regeneration from differentiating embryonic stem cells” (Nat. Med. 2008, 14:134-143). This was the first example of using embryonic stem cells to improve muscle function in muscular dystrophy. Such findings have extraordinary biological and therapeutic significance.

Honors and Awards
1991 Master’s Fellowship from FAPESP, Government of Sao Paulo, Brazil.
1993 PhD Fellowship from CAPES, Government of Brazil.
1993 PhD Fellowship from FAPESP, Government of Sao Paulo, Brazil.
1999 Postdoctoral Fellowship from FAPESP, Government of Sao Paulo, Brazil

Professional Organizations
American Society of Hematology
International Society for Stem Cell Research
American Association for the Advancement of Science
American Heart Association

Research Interests
Dr. Perlingeiro’s principal research interests involve stem cell regulation, cell lineage decisions, and the regenerative potential of stem cells. Her three main research projects are currently being funded by the National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases, and the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute of the NIH, and the Muscular Dystrophy Association.

Selected Publications (2005-2009)

1. Darabi R, Santos FNC, Filareto A, Pan W, Koene R, Rudnicki M, Kyba M, & Perlingeiro RCR, (2011) "Assessment of the Myogenic Stem Cell Compartment Following Transplantation of Pax3/Pax7-Induced Embryonic Stem Cell-Derived Progenitors" Stem Cells, in press.

2. Ramos A, Darabi R, Akbarloo N, Borges L, Catanese J, Dineen SP, Brekken RA & Perlingeiro RCR, (2010) Clonal analysis reveals a common progenitor for endothelial, myeloid, and lymphoid precursors in cord blood Circulation Research, 107:1460-1469.

3. Darabi R, Baik J, Clee M, Kyba M, Tupler R & Perlingeiro RCR (2009), Engraftment of Embryonic Stem Cell-Derived Myogenic Progenitors in a Dominant Model of Muscular Dystrophy Experimental Neurology, 220:212-216.

4. Gang EJ, Darabi R, Bosnakovski D, Clee M, Xu Z, Kamm KE & Perlingeiro RCR, (2009) Engraftment of mesenchymal stem cells into dystrophin-deficient mice is not accompanied by functional recovery Experimental Cell Research, 315:2624-2636.

5. Darabi R, Gehlbach K, Stull JT, Kamm KE, Kyba M & Perlingeiro RCR, (2008) Functional skeletal muscle regeneration from differentiating embryonic stem cells Nature Medicine, 14:134-143.

6. Darabi R, Santos FNC & Perlingeiro RCR, (2008) The therapeutic potential of embryonic and adult stem cells for skeletal muscle regeneration Stem Cell Reviews, 4:217-225 (invited review).

7. Gang EJ, Bosnakovski D, Simsek T, To K & Perlingeiro RCR, (2008) Pax3 activation promotes the differentiation of mesenchymal stem cells toward the myogenic lineage Experimental Cell Research, 314:1721-1733.

8. Perlingeiro RCR, (2007) Endoglin is required for hemangioblast and early hematopoietic development Development, 134:3041-3048.

9. Gang EJ, Bosnakovski D, Figueiredo CA, Visser JW & Perlingeiro RCR, (2007) SSEA-4 identifies mesenchymal stem cells from bone marrow Blood, 109:1743-1751.

10. Perlingeiro RCR, Kyba M, Bodie S & Daley GQ, (2003) A role for TPO in hemangioblast development Stem Cells, 21:272-280

11. Kyba M, Perlingeiro RCR & Daley GQ, (2002) HoxB4 confers definitive lymphoid-myeloid engraftment potential on embryonic stem cell and yolk sac hematopoietic progenitors Cell, 109:29-37

12. Perlingeiro RCR, Kyba M, & Daley GQ, (2001) Clonal analyis of differentiating embryonic stem cells reveals a hematopoietic progenitor with primitive erythroid and adult lymphoid-myeloid potential Development, 128:4597-4604