The UCSF Program in Craniofacial and Mesenchymal Biology (CMB) brings together faculty, research labs and investigators, who are interested in the development and function of the craniofacial complex and of tissues of mesenchymal origin, such as muscle, cartilage, and bone. Researchers in the CMB Program also study the biology of a variety of stem cells, and how these progenitors differentiate into tissues. Finally, CMB Program researchers study interactions between tissues, such as the interactions between mesenchymal and epithelial tissues, how tissue differentiation and interactions give rise to normal craniofacial development, and how deregulation of tissue differentiation and interactions is at the basis of many craniofacial anomalies and musculoskeletal diseases.

The CMB Program aims at bringing together basic researchers, translational and clinical researchers. Faculty are drawn from different departments and have affiliations with different graduate programs, most notably the Biomedical Sciences Program, the Tetrad Program in Developmental Biology, the Graduate Program in Oral and Craniofacial Sciences, and the UCSF/UCB Graduate Program in Bioengineering. Faculty are also affiliated with a number of clinical units , including the Center for Craniofacial Anomolies, Pediatric Dentistry, Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, Division of Plastic Surgery, Division of Medical Genetics, and Department of Orthopedics.

CMB Program Activities

Research seminars by visiting and local speakers; click here
A research-in-progress series, in which students, postdoctoral fellows or faculty present their results informally.
An annual retreat.

For additional information contact Roger Mraz at: roger.mraz@ucsf.edu.

Additional Information
For additional information about the CMB Program, please contact:

Ophir Klein, M.D., Ph.D.
Director, Craniofacial and Mesenchymal Biology Program
Departments of Orofacial Sciences and Pediatrics
University of California at San Francisco
513 Parnassus Avenue, Box 0422
San Francisco, CA 94143-0422
Tel: 1 415 476 4719 (office)
1 415 476 4720 (lab)
Fax: 415-476-9513
e-mail: ophir.klein@ucsf.edu
web: http://klein.ucsf.edu

Fat cells in culture

Osteoblast depositing
bone matrix