The George Washington University (GW) School of Medicine and Health Sciences renamed the Department of Anatomy and Regenerative Biology to the Department of Anatomy and Cell Biology.
“Considering the current teaching and research activities of the department, particularly with newly recruited faculty members, this new name better represents our collective expertise,” said Sally A. Moody, PhD, chair and professor in the Department of Anatomy and Cell Biology.
The department is home to some of the university's leading educators. As a traditional anatomy department, educational efforts are directed toward undergraduate and graduate courses in gross anatomy, microscopic anatomy, embryology, and neuroanatomy for medical, health sciences, physical therapy, and basic science students. All faculty engaged in these courses teach aspects of the cell biology of human tissues.
The department is also home to groundbreaking research at the cell biological level. As a modern biomedical research department, faculty members direct federally funded projects, with a focus on molecular, cellular, and developmental aspects in the fields of neurobiology and cancer biology. Research-active faculty belong to the university's interdisciplinary graduate program in biomedical sciences, which gives PhD degrees in the fields of cancer biology, genomics and bioinformatics, microbiology and immunology, neuroscience, and pharmacology and physiology.
There are several faculty engaged in research at the GW Cancer Center. Projects include looking at detecting cell biological changes in breast cancer cells through ultra-high-resolution microscopes and developing cell organoid culture systems to study the development of the prostate gland to better understand the cell biological changes that occur during cancer. Additionally, expanded faculty expertise includes research on the evolution of anatomical variation. Several faculty are members of the GW Institute for Neuroscience and are investigating the cellular and molecular bases of craniofacial disorders, corneal innervation, and mitochondrial, cerebral cortical and vestibular dysfunctions.
“We have evolved and will continue to grow and develop in the coming years,” said Moody. “Our new name not only reflects where we are now, but where we see ourselves in the future. We anticipate expanded opportunities in education and research in the department in the upcoming years.”
