Cellular Therapy

There is growing evidence that cellular senescence plays a critical role in the pathogenesis of chronic liver diseases. McGowan Institute for Regenerative Medicine affiliated faculty member Michael Oertel, PhD, Associate Professor of Pathology, Division of Experimental Pathology, Department of Pathology, and a member of the Liver Research Center at the University of Pittsburgh, is a co-principal investigator on a project that will dissect the role of the activin A/p15INK4b axis in inducing senescence and how it impacts chronic liver disease progression. Uncovering mechanism(s) and identifying essential mediators of hepatocyte senescence will provide fundamental new information for developing novel therapeutic strategies to halt progression of chronic liver diseases. Read More

The lab of McGowan Institute for Regenerative Medicine affiliated faculty member Samira Kiani, PhD, Associate Professor, Liver Research Center, Department of Pathology, School of Medicine, University of Pittsburgh, focuses on developing controllable genetic circuits by combining the Clustered Regularly Interspaced Short Palindromic Repeats (CRISPR) technology with design principles of synthetic biology. She and her team seek to precisely control the location, the timing or logic of function of Cas9 and multiple gRNAs so that they can develop safer and more controllable gene therapy platforms or employ the tools for sophisticated reprograming of cellular function and fate. Read More

The University of Pittsburgh Department of Pathology Research Seminar series will resume in September with the first seminar for the fall to be held Wednesday, September 15 @ noon. Read More

McGowan Institute for Regenerative Medicine affiliated faculty member John Pacella, MD, Associate Professor in the School of Medicine at the University of Pittsburgh, an adjunct Associate Professor of Biomedical Engineering at Carnegie Mellon University, and an interventional cardiologist within the UPMC Heart and Vascular Institute, and Xiaoning Jiang, PhD, Dean F. Duncan Distinguished Professor of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering at the North Carolina State University, Adjunct Professor of Biomedical Engineering at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and North Carolina State University, and Adjunct Professor of Neurology at Duke University, are co-investigators on a novel R33 award as part of the recently launched NHLBI Catalyze Program which aims at “facilitating the transition of basic science discoveries into viable diagnostic and therapeutic candidates cleared for human testing.” Read More

The Vascular Bioengineering Lab (VBL) at the University of Pittsburgh’s Swanson School of Engineering—led by McGowan Institute for Regenerative Medicine affiliated faculty member David Vorp, PhD, Associate Dean for Research, Swanson School of Engineering, and the John A. Swanson Professor of Bioengineering—seeks to understand and develop solutions to the causes and effects of disease in tubular tissue and organs. Part of this research includes a closer look at abdominal aortic aneurysms (AAA)—the 15th leading cause of death in the United States. Read More

The results of a study by an international scientific team co-led by the Translational Genomics Research Institute (TGen), an affiliate of City of Hope, suggest that — like pouring water atop a wellhead before pumping — the airway cells of patients with chronic lung diseases are “primed” for infection by the COVID-19 virus, resulting in more severe symptoms, poorer outcomes, and a greater likelihood of death. Read More

Researchers from the University of Pittsburgh Liver Research Center, McGowan Institute for Regenerative Medicine, and Carnegie Mellon University’s (CMU) Computational Biology Department have been awarded almost $1.5 million from the National Science Foundation (NSF) to develop new approaches for producing liver organoids — tiny, lab-grown human organs that have potential for disease modeling, drug discovery, and transplantation. Read More

Cardiovascular disease is a leading cause of death in the United States and the contributing factor for one in every four deaths. An improved understanding of the mechanisms behind atherosclerosis, a common contributor to cardiovascular disease, may help guide new therapeutic strategies to combat this deadly disease. Read More

Scientists from the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine described a new phenomenon in which the deletion of a single gene involved in liver embryogenesis completely wipes out bile ducts of newborn mice. But despite a major defect in their bile excretion system, those animals don’t die immediately after birth. Rather, they survive for up to eight months and remain physically active, if small and yellow-tinted. Read More

McGowan Institute for Regenerative Medicine faculty member Donna Stolz, PhD, Associate Director of the Center for Biologic Imaging, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, and an Associate Professor in the Departments of Cell Biology and Pathology at the University of Pittsburgh, is a co-author on a study where it was found by University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine neurologists that specialized immune cells that accumulate in the brain in the days and weeks after a stroke promote neural functions in mice, pointing to a potential immunotherapy that may boost recovery after the acute injury is over. Read More

McGowan Institute for Regenerative Medicine faculty member Kacey Marra, PhD, Professor, Departments of Plastic Surgery and Bioengineering, Vice Chair of Research, Department of Plastic Surgery, recently was awarded a 2-year, $2,085,067 Department of Defense (DOD) Congressionally Directed Medical Research Programs, Peer Reviewed Medical Research Program (PRMRP), Technology/Therapeutic Development Award (TTDA) grant to obtain regulatory approval for her novel nerve guide.  This will provide funds to finish the necessary testing of the nerve guide to get approval for the first human clinical trial. The co-investigator is Anthony Windebank, MD, Professor of Neurology, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minnesota, where the team will optimize the manufacturing process of the nerve guides under GMP conditions. Read More

Paul Kirsch of Greentree is a retired U.S. Marine and Reservist, teacher and administrator in the Northgate and Keystone Oaks school districts, and a former Keystone Oaks School Board member. He had his first job in sixth grade and worked post-retirement until he was 80, teaching education classes at a local college. Now at age 87, Mr. Kirsch’s upbeat attitude and enthusiasm for life hasn’t waned. Read More

For tens of millions of patients who battle chronic lung diseases, present-day care options are mostly limited to short-term drug and oxygen therapy. McGowan Institute for Regenerative Medicine affiliated faculty member and Carnegie Mellon University’s (CMU’s) Biomedical Engineering’s Interim Department Head and Professor Keith Cook, PhD, is working on innovative technologies to advance the long-term effectiveness and future use of artificial organs to address this worldwide issue. Read More

With their article published in Nature, the National Institutes of Health’s Somatic Cell Gene Editing Consortium provided a detailed update on the progress of their nationwide effort to develop safer and more effective methods to edit the genomes of disease-relevant somatic cells and reduce the burden of disease caused by genetic changes.  McGowan Institute for Regenerative Medicine affiliated faculty member Samira Kiani, MD, Associate Professor, Liver Research Center, Department of Pathology, School of Medicine, University of Pittsburgh, is a co-author of this work. Read More

The McGowan Institute for Regenerative Medicine welcomes new affiliated faculty member Sruti Shiva, PhD. Read More

Nuclear power offers an efficient, reliable way to provide energy to large populations – as long as all goes well. Accidents involving nuclear reactors such as those that took place in 1986 at Chernobyl and at Fukushima Daiichi after the March 2011 tsunami raise major concerns about what happens if the worst occurs and large numbers of people are simultaneously exposed to high levels of radiation. Currently, there are no effective, safe therapies for total body irradiation (TBI) – a condition known as acute radiation syndrome (ARS). That could change, in the future based on new research published in Stem Cells Translational Medicine. Read More

A dislocated shoulder is a common sports injury that can occur with a single swing of the tennis racket or an awkward fall on the field. Though popping the bone back into the socket may seem like a simple solution, the reality is more complex. Read More

Compared with women whose blood pressure during pregnancy was normal, women with a history of hypertensive disorders of pregnancy, such as preeclampsia and gestational hypertension, have major differences in the structure and function of the heart a decade after childbirth, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine researchers report in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology. McGowan Institute for Regenerative Medicine affiliated faculty member Flordeliza Villanueva, MD, Professor of Medicine in the Division of Cardiology and Vice Chair for Pre-Clinical Research of the Department of Medicine, and Director of Non-Invasive Cardiac Imaging at the UPMC Heart and Vascular Institute, is a co-author on the publication. Read More

The McGowan Institute for Regenerative Medicine welcomes new affiliated faculty member Anita Saraf, MD, PhD. Read More

Academics, researchers, and scientists are being recognized for their significant contributions to the anatomical sciences and the future of anatomy education and research by the American Association for Anatomy (AAA), the U.S.-based international society representing 2,300 members in anatomy and anatomy-related disciplines. McGowan Institute for Regenerative Medicine affiliated faculty member Heather Szabo-Rogers, PhD, Assistant Professor in the Department of Oral Biology, Center for Craniofacial Regeneration, School of Dental Medicine, University of Pittsburgh, recently was awarded funding through the AAA Fellows Grant Award Program (FGAP). Read More

McGowan Institute for Regenerative Medicine affiliated faculty member George Michalopoulos, PhD, Professor and Chairman of the Department of Pathology at the University of Pittsburgh, received NIH funding to study the impact of inhibition of EGF receptor on non-alcoholic fatty liver disease. This proposal, which is funded for 5 years, will study an important role of EGFR signaling in the pathogenesis of NASH/NAFLD and has high translational impact. Other Pittsburgh Liver Research Center members supporting the study include Ramon Bataller, MD, PhD, and Aatur Singhi, MD, PhD. Read More

McGowan Institute for Regenerative Medicine affiliated faculty members who are also members of the Pittsburgh Liver Research Center (PLRC) recently published several articles.  The authors include: Read More

Hitting a pothole on the road in just the wrong way might create a bulge on the tire, a weakened spot that will almost certainly lead to an eventual flat tire. But what if that tire could immediately begin reknitting its rubber, reinforcing the bulge, and preventing it from bursting? Read More

McGowan Institute for Regenerative Medicine affiliated faculty member Giuseppe Intini, DDS, PhD, Associate Professor of Periodontics and Preventive Dentistry at the University of Pittsburgh, School of Dental Medicine, recently talked with Nicole Fabian-Weber of Care.com about the potential benefits of saving your child’s baby teeth for future medical needs.  What Ms. Fabian-Weber learned is that, at this point, few experts are completely sold on the practice. Read More

Carnegie Mellon University’s Biomedical Engineering and Materials Science and Engineering Professor Adam Feinberg, PhD, along with postdoctoral fellow Dan Shiwarski, PhD, and graduate student Joshua Tashman have created a novel biosensor that reveals the mechanobiological forces that shape organ development.  Dr. Feinberg is also an affiliated faculty member of the McGowan Institute for Regenerative Medicine. Read More

Genprex, Inc., a clinical-stage gene therapy company focused on developing life-changing therapies for patients with cancer and diabetes, announced the addition of George Gittes, MD to its Scientific Advisory Board (SAB). Dr. Gittes is the inventor of the Company’s licensed diabetes gene therapy technology that is currently in development and serves as the Chief of Pediatric Surgery and Surgeon-in-Chief Emeritus at the UPMC Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh. Read More

Animals, plants, fungi, and protozoans all have eukaryotic cells, and the cytoskeleton in these systems plays an important role in cell shape, movement, and division. Disruption in this complex network of protein filaments can lead to cell and organ dysfunction. Read More

Gene therapy generally relies on viruses, such as adeno-associated virus (AAV), to deliver genes into a cell. In case of CRISPR-based gene therapies, molecular scissors can then snip out a defective gene, add in a missing sequence or enact a temporary change in its expression, but the body’s immune response to AAV can thwart the whole endeavor. Read More

Every time you flex your bicep or stretch your calf muscle, you put your cells under stress. Every move we make throughout the day causes our cells to stretch and deform. But this cellular deformation can be dangerous and could potentially lead to permanent damage to the DNA in our cells, and even cancer. So how is it that we’re able to keep our bodies moving without constantly destroying our cells? Thanks to a new study by McGowan Institute for Regenerative Medicine affiliated faculty member and Carnegie Mellon University (CMU) Chemical Engineering Professor Kris Dahl, PhD, and Associate Professor Sara Wickström, MD, PhD, of the University of Helsinki, we now know that the answer lies in a humble mineral we consume every day. Read More

LyGenesis, Inc., a biotechnology company focused on regenerative medicine founded by McGowan Institute for Regenerative Medicine faculty member Eric Lagasse, PharmD, PhD, recently announced the publication of four peer-reviewed papers on its organ regeneration technology.  Dr. Lagasse is LyGenesis’s Chief Scientific Officer, Associate Professor in the Department of Pathology at the University of Pittsburgh, and Director of the Cancer Stem Cell Center at the McGowan Institute.  Dr. Lagasse is a co-author on each of the publications. Read More

Hepatocytes — the chief functional cells of the liver — are natural regenerators, and the lymph nodes serve as a nurturing place where they can multiply. In a new study published in the journal Liver Transplantation, researchers at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine showed that large animals with ailing livers can grow a new organ in their lymph nodes from their own hepatocytes. A human clinical trial is next. Read More

The McGowan Institute for Regenerative Medicine welcomes new affiliated faculty member Samira Kiani, MD. Read More

McGowan Institute for Regenerative Medicine affiliated faculty member Sachin Velankar, PhD, Professor, Department of Chemical & Petroleum Engineering, Swanson School of Engineering, University of Pittsburgh, recently was awarded a National Science Foundation grant for his proposal entitled “Collaborative Research: Micromechanics of Meniscus-bound Particle Clusters.”  Dr. Valenkar shares this grant with Charles Schroeder, PhD, Associate Head and Ray and Beverly Mentzer Professor, Department of Chemical & Biomolecular Engineering, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.  The award is for three years for a total of $510,000 ($292K as the Pitt portion). Read More

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases has awarded a grant of $2.59 million to George Gittes, MD, director of the Richard King Mellon Foundation Institute for Pediatric Research, co-scientific director at UPMC Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh, and affiliated faculty member of the McGowan Institute for Regenerative Medicine, to support continuing development of gene therapy technology that may have the potential to cure Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes, which affects approximately 10% of the U.S. population, or more than 34 million people. Read More

Roughly one in eight women in the United States will develop invasive breast cancer over the course of  her lifetime, and HER2-positive (HER2+) breast cancers represent about 25 percent of all breast cancer cases. Though multiple therapies exist, most patients will develop metastatic disease and resistance to current treatments. Read More

Today in the United States there are millions of people suffering from liver disease which makes it the second cause of liver transplant.  Only 30-35% of those in need of a liver will receive one.  Approximately 30,000 people per year will die from liver disease. Read More

The McGowan Institute for Regenerative Medicine welcomes new affiliated faculty member Tirthadipa Pradhan, PhD. Read More

The McGowan Institute for Regenerative Medicine welcomes new affiliated faculty member Mo Ebrahimkhani, MD. Read More

Researchers from Sechenov University and University of Pittsburgh discovered that the resistance of innate immune cells, macrophages, to ferroptosis – a type of programmed cell death – depends on the type of their activation. It turned out that cells helping tissues to recover from inflammation were more vulnerable. The researchers identified the mechanisms underlying the cells’ resistance and explained how this research would help regulate inflammation in a paper published in Nature Chemical Biology.  McGowan Institute for Regenerative Medicine affiliated faculty members Valerian Kagan, PhD, DSc, Professor and Vice-Chairman in the Department of Environmental and Occupational Health as well as a Professor in the Department of Pharmacology and Chemical Biology, the Department of Radiation Oncology, and the Department of Chemistry at the University of Pittsburgh, and Ivet Bahar, PhD, Distinguished Professor, the John K. Vries Chair, and the Founding Chair in the Department of Computational & Systems Biology at the University of Pittsburgh’s School of Medicine, are co-authors on the study. Read More

Using skin cells from human volunteers, researchers at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine have created fully functional mini livers, which they then transplanted into rats. Read More