An abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA) can be a ticking time bomb if undiscovered in time. However, researchers at the University of Pittsburgh are developing a new model to better predict at-risk patients. And the tools they are using apply mechanical testing to the human body – which is itself a complex machine.
The American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering (AIMBE) announced the election of 174 new members of the AIMBE College of Fellows in recognition of their distinguished and continuing achievements in medical and biological engineering. Two of those inductees include McGowan Institute for Regenerative Medicine affiliated faculty members:
DNA viruses, such as herpesviruses and poxviruses, are among the most prolific and deadly viruses on Earth. Their ability to proliferate widely is due in large part to the way these viruses incubate in the body. Many DNA viral infections can enter what’s known as a latent state, in which the person does not experience symptoms of illness, though the virus is still present and able to reactivate to a proliferative state later. Latent viral infections also express different markers than the proliferative phenotypes, rendering them invisible to current treatments and screening.
At the University of Pittsburgh Swanson School of Engineering, the Tumor Microenvironment Engineering Laboratory (TME Lab) is where researchers employ a quantitative approach that integrates microfluidics, systems biology modeling, and in vivo experiments to investigate the role of the tumor microenvironment on breast and ovarian cancer growth, metastasis, and drug resistance. The goal of the TME lab research program is to discover biomarkers that guide new drug development and improve prognosis, develop new strategies to optimize existing treatment protocols, and engineer microfabricated tools that enable screening and personalization of cancer therapies.
The mechanism by which acute viral respiratory infections promote secondary bacterial growth and infection in the airways depends on iron-carrying extracellular sacs secreted by the cells lining the host’s airways, report researchers from the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine in a paper published in Cell Reports. 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 the paper.
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).
Among US adults with kidney failure, race and social determinants of health were associated with patients’ likelihood of receiving a kidney transplant. The findings come from an analysis that is in the Clinical Journal of the American Society of Nephrology (CJASN). McGowan Institute for Regenerative Medicine affiliated faculty member Mary Amanda Dew, PhD, Professor of Psychiatry, Psychology, Epidemiology, Nursing, and Biostatistics at the University of Pittsburgh and also a Professor at the Clinical and Translational Science Institute, is a co-author of the study.
McGowan Institute for Regenerative Medicine affiliated faculty member Richard Debski, PhD, William Kepler Whiteford Faculty Fellow, Co-Director, Orthopaedic Robotics Laboratory, Professor, University of Pittsburgh Departments of Bioengineering and Orthopaedic Surgery, is a co-author of a study to investigate tibiofemoral bony morphology features associated with ACL injury and sex utilizing three-dimensional statistical shape modeling. Other co-authors of this work include:
The National Academy of Inventors (NAI) has named 63 of the world’s best emerging academic inventors to its 2021 class of Senior Members. Three of those honorees are McGowan Institute for Regenerative Medicine affiliated faculty members (pictured top to bottom):
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.
