My research interest focuses on how adult stem and progenitor cells know to self renew or differentiate. The development and homeostasis of the mammary gland, or breast, is reliant on a balance between the self-renewal and differentiation of its stem/progenitor cell populations thus making it a great model to study stem cell biology. Particularly, I study the process of alveologenesis or milk production, since in order to perform the function of providing milk for offspring, the alveolar progenitor population must generate the millions of cells required for net tissue growth and cyclical tissue renewal, especially when considering multiple possible pregnancies. However, the mechanisms by which these progenitor cells tightly regulate the balance of self-renewal and differentiation are not fully understood.