By Cristina D’Imperio
Chandan Sen, PhD, MD, will join the McGowan Institute for Regenerative Medicine, the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, and UPMC this summer. Dr. Sen and his team of more than two dozen faculty, postdoctoral associates, and staff are coming to Pittsburgh from Indiana University.
Dr. Sen’s research focuses on developing therapies for chronic wounds, a potentially life-threatening condition that affects millions of people in the U.S. In patients with diabetes, foot ulcers are a common chronic wound with high amputation rates. Sen serves as the special projects chair of the Diabetic Foot Consortium, a multi-center, National Institutes of Health-funded network that aims to improve diabetic wound healing and prevent amputations among the 27 million adults in the U.S. who live with diabetes.
Dr. Sen, a renowned expert in regenerative medicine and pioneer of novel wound care technologies, is known for the development of innovative nanotransfection technology that transforms skin tissue into other types of tissue, which can then be used for healing burns, treating injuries, replacing damaged or diseased tissues, and other therapies.
“Our entire incoming team is excited about the tremendous opportunity to join the Pitt-UPMC ecosystem, well known for its unmatched strength in fostering transformative advances in interdisciplinary biomedical and clinical research,” said Sen. “The McGowan Institute will be home to the Pennsylvania site of the Diabetic Foot Consortium, and the Joslin Diabetes Center at Harvard will serve as our satellite site. Clinical research across 20 UPMC wound care sites supported by innovative basic science research and industry partnerships will position the McGowan Institute as a national leader in this emergent health care discipline.”
Dr. Sen will join Pitt’s faculty as professor of surgery, with a secondary appointment in the Department of Plastic Surgery. He will also hold leadership roles as associate vice chancellor for life sciences innovation and commercialization and positions of co-director of the McGowan Institute and chief scientific officer of UPMC Wound Healing Services.