McGowan Institute for Regenerative Medicine Badylak Lab Award-Winning Students
Three bioengineering PhD candidates in the laboratory of McGowan Institute for 
Regenerative Medicine deputy director Stephen Badylak, DVM, PhD, MD, professor of surgery, University of Pittsburgh, recently received awards for their continuing education and research pursuits. Those honored include:
- Denver Faulk – a second-year bioengineering student, was awarded a prestigious, 3-year, 2013 National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship Program Fellowship (pictured top left)
- Tim Keane – a first-year bioengineering student, was awarded a prestigious, 3-year, 2013 National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship Program Fellowship (pictured bottom left)
- Lindsey Saldin – an incoming first-year bioengineering doctoral student this fall, was awarded the BioEngineering Bevier Fellowship (pictured right)
Mr. Faulk’s project is entitled “Engineering a Fully Functional Whole Liver Graft Using a Naturally Derived Three-Dimensional Biologic Scaffold Composed of Liver Extracellular Matrix.” The long term goal of this work is to establish the decellularization, recellularization, and transplantation criteria necessary to produce a fully functional bioengineered liver for organ transplantation and drug discovery.
Mr. Keane’s project is entitled “ECM-facilitated Remodeling for Treatment of Early-Stage Esophageal Cancer.” As he notes in his proposal, the proposed research will fulfill the need for a minimally invasive and proactive treatment of precancerous lesions and early-stage esophageal cancers. A recent regenerative medicine approach to esophageal cancer treatment shows potential but an understanding of the cellular mechanisms in esophageal tissue remodeling is necessary to develop more effective therapies. The proposed work seeks to understand the temporal and spatial cellular changes that occur in ECM-facilitated remodeling of the esophagus.
Ms. Saldin is the recipient of a BioEngineering Bevier Fellowship, which is provided to graduate students performing research in critical areas such as energy, sustainability, and bioengineering.
National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship Program Fellowship selections are based on the applicant’s outstanding abilities and accomplishments, as well as his/her potential to contribute to strengthening the vitality of the US science and engineering enterprise.