George Daley

George Daley is Dean of Harvard Medical School and Professor of Biological Chemistry and Molecular Pharmacology, leading the Daley Laboratory at Boston Children's Hospital. His research focuses on stem cell biology with emphasis on hematopoietic differentiation, somatic cell reprogramming, and mechanisms of oncogenesis, particularly related to chronic myeloid leukemia and LIN28 proteins.

Daley earned his bachelor's degree magna cum laude from Harvard (1982), PhD in biology at MIT (1989) working with Nobelist David Baltimore, and MD summa cum laude from Harvard Medical School (1991). He completed medical training with internship/residency at Massachusetts General Hospital and hematology/oncology fellowship at Brigham and Women's and Boston Children's Hospitals. After serving as chief resident at MGH (1994-95), he joined HMS faculty as assistant professor while running a laboratory at the Whitehead Institute. In 2003 he moved to Boston Children's Hospital, later serving as director of the Pediatric Stem Cell Transplantation Program at Dana-Farber/Boston Children's Cancer Center (2009-2016).

His laboratory focuses on three main research programs: directed differentiation of hematopoietic stem cells from pluripotent stem cells to define molecular genetic programs for HSC formation; derivation of genetically defined pluripotent stem cells using nuclear transfer, parthenogenesis, and reprogramming; and mechanisms of oncogenesis with focus on BCR/ABL oncoprotein in chronic myeloid leukemia and Lin28A/B genes in cancer. His work aims to improve transplantation therapies for genetic and malignant blood disorders.

Analysis of Daley's recent publications (2024-2025) reveals a strong translational focus on applying stem cell technologies to cancer immunotherapy (particularly CAR T cell development), understanding hematopoietic development across the human lifespan, and exploring epigenetic regulation in stem cell differentiation and cancer. His work bridges fundamental stem cell biology with clinical applications, with increasing emphasis on gene editing technologies and their implementation in medicine.

• NIH Director's Pioneer Award for highly innovative research
• American Philosophical Society's Judson Daland Prize for achievement in patient-oriented research
• American Pediatric Society's E. Mead Johnson Award for contributions to stem cell research
• American Society of Hematology's E. Donnall Thomas Prize for advances in human-induced pluripotent stem cells
• International Chronic Myeloid Leukemia Foundation's Janet Rowley Prize for outstanding lifetime contributions

Daley has been a principal figure in developing international guidelines for stem cell research and its clinical translation, serving as president of the International Society for Stem Cell Research (2007-08). He has testified six times before Congress and spoken globally on the scientific and ethical dimensions of stem cell research and genome editing. His laboratory has received significant funding for research on stem cell biology, hematopoietic differentiation, and cancer mechanisms, with numerous collaborative projects advancing regenerative medicine applications.

The Daley Laboratory at Boston Children's Hospital serves as a collaborative hub for stem cell research, bringing together scientists from diverse backgrounds to tackle fundamental questions in stem cell biology and its applications to human disease. The lab has made important contributions including the creation of customized stem cells to treat genetic immune deficiencies, generation of disease-specific pluripotent stem cells through direct reprogramming, and demonstration of the role of the LIN28/let-7 pathway in cancer.