McGowan Institute?
September 2011 | VOL. 10, NO. 9 | www.McGowan.pitt.edu
Pitt Receives $3.54 Million Coulter Foundation Translational Bioengineering Research Award
McGowan Institute for Regenerative Medicine faculty member Harvey Borovetz, PhD, chair of the Department of Bioengineering, the Robert L. Hardesty Professor in the School of Medicine's Department of Surgery, and deputy director-Artificial Organs and Medical Devices-McGowan Institute, will be the principal investigator and one of three co-leaders for a $3.54 million grant from the Wallace H. Coulter Foundation. The Swanson School of Engineering at the University of Pittsburgh is one of only five universities nationwide to receive the Coulter Foundation's Translational Partnership II Award; the 5-year grant to the Swanson School's Department of Bioengineering will fund research that employs engineering techniques to develop improvements in health care, with the ultimate goal of accelerating the introduction of new technologies into patient care. The other members of the leadership team for the Coulter program at Pitt are McGowan Institute for Regenerative Medicine deputy director Stephen Badylak, DVM, PhD, MD, professor in the School of Medicine's Department of Surgery and director of Preclinical Studies at the McGowan Institute, and Marc Malandro, PhD director of the Office of Technology Management and associate vice chancellor for technology management and commercialization at Pitt.
The award from the Coulter Foundation will be supplemented by $1.5 million in matching funds from the Pitt School of Medicine, the Swanson School, and the University's Office of Technology Management.
"We are thrilled to have been chosen to receive this award and participate in the Coulter Foundation program. Not only will it be of tremendous benefit to the individual researchers who receive funding, but it affirms both the growing prominence and future potential of Pitt's bioengineering program," said Gerald D. Holder, PhD, Pitt's U.S. Steel Dean of Engineering.
Pratap Khanwilkar, PhD, will serve as the Coulter Program Director and Visiting Professor in the Swanson School's bioengineering department and as Executive-In-Residence at the University's Office of Technology Management. Dr. Khanwilkar, who has studied, taught, and conducted research at the University of Utah for 28 years, most recently as an adjunct professor in the Department of Bioengineering, is the founder of six medical device product/service companies. In a uniquely fashioned, multifaceted position, Dr. Khanwilkar has been hired to guide the development of appropriate projects to be undertaken by Pitt researchers; ensure that they are properly vetted by a Coulter oversight committee; and facilitate the progress of securing additional funding, licensing intellectual property, and developing spin-off companies.
"We are especially pleased to have been chosen to receive this award because the University has demonstrated not only its ability to form partnerships between clinicians and engineers to develop ideas and products that will directly impact patients, but also the passion to see those ideas through to clinical application," Dr. Borovetz said.
Another significant determinant was the strength of the relationships the foundation has had with both individuals like Dr. Borovetz and the Pitt researchers whom the foundation already supports through the Coulter Translation Research Awards program for individual investigators.
The $3.54 million award was made to Pitt as part of a second phase of program development from the Coulter Foundation. Translational partnership awards through the first program development phase were made in 2005 to 9 U.S. universities. The $40 million awarded by Coulter in that first phase has resulted in an additional $300 million in investments to further the development and market applications of the various projects initiated as a result of the 9 Coulter-funded programs.
The Coulter Foundation and six universities in the first phase established $20,000,000 funds at each school to continue the program. Half of the funds were contributed by the Coulter Foundation and each school raised the remainder.
The foundation used feedback it sought from universities that received funding in the first phase of the program to adopt a more formal procedure, dubbed the "Coulter Process," which they believe will yield even richer technology transfers of new products, applications, materials, and/or services to the medical community.
The Coulter Process allows for a 1-year startup period during which the 5-year program will be established on campus by the Pitt program's leadership team. "Through the research funded by this generous award, the University's bioengineering faculty members are pleased to partner with the Coulter Foundation in working to fulfill the mission of Wallace Coulter expressed in his company's motto, 'Science Serving Humanity,' " Dr. Borovetz stated.
Dr. Alan J. Russell, the founding director of the McGowan Institute announced that effective September 1, 2011 he was resigning as the Institute's director. Dr. Russell shared his assessment of the advances in regenerative medicine by the McGowan affiliated faculty over the past ten years and the rationale behind his decision to step down as the director of the Institute in a letter to the faculty and colleagues that is available here. Dr. Russell will continue with his academic responsibilities as distinguished university professor of surgery, and professor in the departments of Bioengineering, Chemical Engineering, and Rehabilitation Science and Technology, University of Pittsburgh.
Arthur S. Levine, MD Senior Vice Chancellor for the Health Sciences and Dean of the School of Medicine, University of Pittsburgh has appointed William R. Wagner, PhD as the interim director of the Institute. Dr. Wagner has served as Deputy Director of the Institute, and he is a Professor of Surgery in the School of Medicine, as well as Professor of Bioengineering and Chemical Engineering in the Swanson School of Engineering.
Dr. Levine has composed a Search Committee which will be responsible for identifying candidates for the permanent directorship of the McGowan Institute. Dr. Timothy Billiar, George Vance Foster Professor and Chair in the Department of Surgery, is the chair of the Committee.
On September 29, 2011, over 80 colleagues and friends attended a reception to recognize the contributions by Dr. Russell to regenerative medicine. Master of ceremonies Dr. Wagner highlighted some of the milestones in the ten years that Dr. Russell served as the director and presented Dr. Russell with a commemorative book.
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First Annual Symposium on Regenerative Rehabilitation to be held in Pittsburgh
The University of Pittsburgh and UPMC are co-sponsoring the First Annual Symposium on Regenerative Rehabilitation, which will be held on November 3 and 4, 2011 at the DoubleTree hotel in downtown Pittsburgh. The event will bring together world-renowned experts in the fields of regenerative medicine and rehabilitation.
Conference presenters will focus on the rapidly accelerating field of regenerative medicine. Technologies using biomaterials and cellular therapies to heal the body are in clinical trials and in clinical practice across the country. It is therefore necessary to answer two very important questions:
- 1. How do we as clinicians and rehabilitation professionals follow up on a patient who had undergone a cellular therapy or a tissue-engineering procedure?
- 2. And how do we as investigators in the field of Regenerative Medicine make the most of these revolutionary results?
Few opportunities are available to bring together scientists and clinicians working in rehabilitation science and regenerative medicine. However, rehabilitation science and regenerative therapies have to work closely to achieve successful patient outcomes. This situation creates the need for open cross-disciplinary work and collaborative communication.
Participants in the conference will have the opportunity to earn continuing medical education credits.
Course directors are Fabrisia Ambrosio, PhD; Alan Russell, PhD; and Michael Boninger, MD. Conference sponsors are the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine Center for Continuing Education in the Health Sciences, UPMC Rehabilitation Institute, and the McGowan Institute for Regenerative Medicine.
For more information, visit www.upmc.com/RegenerativeSymposia or contact Larisa Munsch at the McGowan Institute for Regenerative Medicine.
SCIENTIFIC ADVANCES
Over the past 30 years, Pittsburgh has reinvented itself. Once an industrial giant, today Pittsburgh is identified through its world-class educational entities and its discoveries in health care, translation research, and information technology. The founding director of the McGowan Institute for Regenerative Medicine Alan Russell, PhD, distinguished university professor of surgery, and professor in the departments of Bioengineering, Chemical Engineering, and Rehabilitation Science and Technology, University of Pittsburgh, recently spoke with Christine O'Toole of Pittsburgh magazine about Pittsburgh's transformation. Her article entitled "Dynamic Duo" features that conversation.
Dr. Russell believes two events occurring in the 1980's laid the foundation for Pittsburgh's new economy: (1) Through the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Dr. Thomas Starzl's discovery of new organ transplant therapies that revolutionized the field, and (2) through funding from the National Science Foundation, Pitt and Carnegie Mellon University professors (backed by Westinghouse Electric Co.) established one of the nation's first supercomputing centers.
"We were already a leader in transplantation [in the 1980's]," Dr. Russell pointed out. "With supercomputing and early collaborations with CMU, we [began] working across disciplines. We had the desire to become world-class. Now, the environment is world-class."
Over the years, the region has replaced more than 150,000 manufacturing positions with 200,000 jobs in education and medicine. Today's local and national jobs forecast calls for continued demand in engineering, information technology, health care, and education. And in Pittsburgh, scientists collaborate across disciplines. That's evident at the McGowan Institute, where stem-cell researchers, bioengineers and polymer chemists work side by side. The McGowan Institute builds artificial lungs and hearts; isolates cellular building blocks that trigger the body's regrowth of bones, muscles, and nerves; and has taken the steps toward growing human organs.
McGowan Institute scientists have focused on adult stem cells and have proved they can be successfully used to re-grow a dozen key tissue types, including bone, nerve, muscle, and fat. They have also zeroed in on a natural biological substance that's dubbed the extra cellular matrix; when placed in patients, it acts as a scaffold that stimulates surrounding cells to produce the exact type of tissue required.
"The Pitt [School of Medicine's] Department of Surgery was appointing engineers way back," noted Dr. Russell. "There was a suggestion that people work together. We use slightly different tools to do the same thing, and it ties together beautifully."
Pittsburgh research efforts are nurtured by tech business-development groups and effective incubators such as the Pittsburgh Life Sciences Greenhouse, a public/private partnership that assists entrepreneurs in bringing medical devices, therapeutics, diagnostics, and other health discoveries to the market. Innovation Works, another partnership, concentrates on growing new technology companies.
"In terms of technology transfer [bringing new academic discoveries to market], Pittsburgh is one of the top-10 cities in the world. We do OK," said Dr. Russell.
McGowan Institute for Regenerative Medicine affiliated faculty member David Okonkwo, MD, PhD, assistant professor of neurological surgery and director of neurotrauma, director of spinal deformity at UPMC Presbyterian, and clinical director of the Brain Trauma Research Center of the University of Pittsburgh, has partnered with Walter Schneider, a University of Pittsburgh psychology professor and senior scientist at Pitt's Learning Research and Development Center, to better understand the workings of the human brain. Dr. Schneider and his colleagues are developing a brain-scanning technology that may allow doctors to determine not only where brain injuries are, but also how the injuries will influence a patient's ability to speak, walk, and think. Dr. Okonkwo is using this new and superior form of MRI—a scan that would help a neurosurgeon understand how a brain bruise might affect neurological connections and affect a patient's life.
Matt Stroud, a staff writer for Pittsburgh Quarterly, recently reported on Dr. Schneider's technology: High Definition Fiber Tracking, which makes the brain's connections visible. Instead of a flat, black and white MRI image, the new technology shows a three-dimensional image of the brain filled with what looks like thin, multi-colored strands of spaghetti. These strands, however, are more like fiber optic cables than food. And they can be mapped to show doctors which brain connections are functional and which aren't.
Recently, Dr. Okonkwo secured funds and permission to run a High Density Fiber Tracking scan on a patient's brain. It was not a fairy tale ending. The scan showed that about 54 percent of the connections in the patient's brain influencing movement of his left leg were severed and likely dead. At best, in other words, he would have to make do with about half the strength of his left leg prior to his injury. The scan showed that about 97 percent of the connections influencing movement of his left arm were severed and likely dead. At best, his arm would operate at about 3 percent strength; in other words, it would be largely immobile for the rest of his life.
"Is he happy with his situation? No," Dr. Okonkwo said. "It's wonderful that he's recovered as much as he has. But, when you're well, you just assume you're going to be well every day of your life. We take that stuff for granted. So there's still frustration associated with the things he can't do and the functional limitations he has. But at least now he some idea about what he can expect."
"Now, rather than spending most of his days being angry about not knowing, he understands what he has to work with and how he can deal with it. The hardest part really is the unknown. And anything we can do to minimize that is a victory for everyone."
McGowan Institute for Regenerative Medicine deputy director Stephen Badylak, DVM, PhD, MD, professor in the Department of Surgery and director of the Center for Pre-Clinical Tissue Engineering within the McGowan Institute, and his research on the healing properties of extracellular matrix (ECM) were named by The Wall Street Journal as heralding one of the latest scientific advances expanding the span of human life. In her article, "Living to 100 and Beyond," author Sonia Arrison explains, "For as long as human beings have searched for the fountain of youth, they have also feared the consequences of extended life. Today we are on the cusp of a revolution that may finally resolve that tension: Advances in medicine and biotechnology will radically increase not just our life spans but also, crucially, our health spans."
Dr. Badylak's laboratory is a highly interdisciplinary environment. The major focus of the laboratory is the development of regenerative medicine strategies for tissue and organ repair or replacement. The use of mammalian ECM or its derivatives as an inductive template for constructive remodeling of tissue is a common theme of most research activities. The central and most important objective of all projects is clinical translation and improved patient care.
It should be noted that some of Dr. Badylak's research has matured to the point that clinical trials are feasible, while the more complex applications are still the subject of research that may require many additional years of study.
In clinical trauma research, the U.S. Army's Institute of Surgical Research (ISR) is examining a variety of combat casualty care problems in trauma patients. ISR is recognized worldwide for its contributions to improved trauma survival. In partnership with the ISR, Dr. Badylak's ECM technology is being evalauted today to help partially ameliorate soldier limb and digit amputation wounds. The project has a digit extension goal of 1 centimeter in length. The study is led by Steven Wolf, MD, at ISR and is currently limited to injured military personnel.
Future clinical studies will follow ECM research projects focused on the development of bioscaffolds for liver and heart regeneration and regenerative medicine for temporomandibular joint (TMJ) disc reconstruction.
Recently, 45 faculty and students of the Engineering Research Center - Revolutionizing Metallic Biomaterials (ERC-RMB) from North Carolina A&T, University of Cincinnati, and University of Pittsburgh got together in Pittsburgh for the very first ERC workshop on Magnesium (Mg)-Based Screw Projects. The workshop was initiated by McGowan Institute for Regenerative Medicine faculty member Savio Woo, PhD, DSc, university professor, bioengineering department and founder and director of the Musculoskeletal Research Center, to tackle the challenges that the research groups in Engineering System-1: Orthopaedic and Maxillofacial Applications are facing in coordinating the research plans for years 4 and 5 based on the year 3 site visit by the National Science Foundation (NSF), the ERC's funding government agency.
Nine organizers from the three institutions put together a program that consisted of seven sessions on topics ranging from clinical requirements to commercialization and intellectual property management. There was ample discussion between the participants and the workshop proved essential to foster collaboration between the ERC research groups in the development of more effective Mg-based screw projects.
The 5-year, $18.5 million ERC grant from the NSF includes the research efforts of dozens of engineers and doctors from universities and industries around the world who currently collaborate on the project announced September 4, 2008, to develop implantable devices made from biodegradable metals. The devices will be designed to adapt to physical changes in a patient's body and dissolve once they have healed. Naturally dissolving plates, screws, stents, and other devices would reduce the follow-up surgeries and potential complications of major orthopedic, craniofacial, and cardiovascular procedures—sparing millions of patients worldwide added pain and medical expenses.
The biodegradable devices and smart structures are intended to reduce complications and spare patients with conditions ranging from cleft palate and bone fractures to coronary heart disease from undergoing multiple surgeries. For instance, children born with a cleft palate are fitted with hard metal devices that must be removed and refitted over time. Devices the ERC researchers will explore—crafted from magnesium alloys and other biodegradable metals—would adapt to the body without refitting. Plus, magnesium alloys can dissolve after their work is done with no clinical side effects, a feature also beneficial in the cardiovascular realm. Magnesium stents and other supports would restore cardiovascular function without needing to later remove the device and without exposing the patient to the potential complications of leaving devices inside the body.
The research work of McGowan Institute for Regenerative Medicine faculty and its clinical translation through the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center (UPMC) was featured on the Discovery Channel, a popular, science-oriented cable television network, that aired an hour-long documentary entitled "Life Changing Medicine" that included some of the innovations created by the regenerative medicine scientists at the McGowan Institute. The program profiles the researchers' life changing innovations in limb transplantation, muscle-restoring regenerative medicine for wounded warriors, and medical technology for children with heart defects.
Hosted by Discovery Channel medical expert Dr. John Whyte, and filmed in Pittsburgh at UPMC, the program explored the wonders of:
- Hand transplantation, with Vijay Gorantla, MD, PhD, associate professor of surgery in the Department of Surgery, Division of Plastic Surgery at the University of Pittsburgh, and administrative medical director of the Pittsburgh Reconstructive Transplant Program at UPMC;
- Regenerative medicine, with Stephen Badylak, DVM, PhD, MD, deputy director, McGowan Institute for Regenerative Medicine, director of the Center for Pre-Clinical Tissue Engineering within the Institute, and professor in the Department of Surgery, University of Pittsburgh; and
- Pediatric ventricular assist devices, with Peter Wearden, MD, PhD, director, Pediatric Mechanical Cardiopulmonary Support Program, Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh of UPMC, and assistant professor of cardiothoracic surgery, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine.
The "Life Changing Medicine" documentary premiered on the Discovery Channel at 8 a.m. Saturday, September 10, 2011. It was repeated at 8 a.m. on September 17 and September 24. The program is also accessible online or as a podcast.
This documentary is part of a series of collaborations between the Discovery Channel and UPMC this past year. These include over 50 podcasts to help educate physicians on the latest medical information on a wide variety of topics such as cancer care, heart disease, and women's health. Future projects are in the works. "Discovery Channel and UPMC are like-minded organizations, in pursuit of innovation and excellence. Our partnership gives us an opportunity to educate consumers about the advancements in medicine and technology that are both forward-looking and practical," states Dr. Whyte.
"It's a rare opportunity to collaborate on a program that highlights the often groundbreaking and life changing care that we deliver every day to our patients. This showcases just a sampling of our finest physicians and hospitals which provide the world-class care that ranks among the nation's best," said Marshall W. Webster, MD, executive vice-president, UPMC, and president UPMC Physician Services Division.
AWARDS AND RECOGNITIONS
McGowan Institute for Regenerative Medicine affiliated faculty member and Carnegie Mellon University assistant professor Christopher Bettinger, PhD, is one of 35 researchers worldwide to be recognized by Technology Review magazine as a TR35 honoree for his innovative work in materials science and biomedical engineering. The award recognizes the world's top innovators under the age of 35, spanning energy, medicine, computing, communications, nanotechnology, and other emerging fields.
"This is a tremendous honor for me as I continue to hone my skills and research for developing technologies that will improve the field of medical devices and the patients these devices serve," said Dr. Bettinger, an assistant professor of materials science and biomedical engineering at Carnegie Mellon's top-ranked College of Engineering.
Dr. Bettinger was selected as a member of the TR35 class of 2011 by a panel of expert judges and the editorial staff of Technology Review, which evaluated more than 300 nominations. He will join other TR35 honorees in discussing their achievements at the emtechMIT2011 conference Oct. 18-19 at the MIT Media Lab in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Dr. Bettinger has worked at the interface of materials science and biomedical engineering for more than 10 years. He has conceived and produced a number of innovations that aim to better integrate medical devices with the human body. These technologies include new synthetic materials that mimic the natural properties of soft tissue and biodegradable electronics that could usher in a new era of electronically active implants. His work is designed to lead to broader advances in the field of medical devices to reduce the burden of human disease and improve quality of life.
"Technology innovation is key to driving growth and progress in the areas of research, medicine, business, and economics," said Jason Pontin, editor-in-chief and publisher of Technology Review. "This year's group of TR35 recipients is driving the next wave of transformative technology and making an impact on the way we live, work, and interact. We look forward to profiling and working with these technology leaders each year, and watching their continued advancement in their receptive fields."
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Visit www.regenerativemedicinetoday.com to keep abreast of the new interviews.
| Authors: | Chu H, Gao J, Chen CW, Huard J, Wang Y. |
| Title: | Injectable fibroblast growth factor-2 coacervate for persistent angiogenesis. |
| Summary: | Enhancing the maturity of the newly formed blood vessels is critical for the success of therapeutic angiogenesis. The maturation of vasculature relies on active participation of mural cells to stabilize endothelium and a basal level of relevant growth factors. We set out to design and successfully achieved robust angiogenesis using an injectable polyvalent coacervate of a polycation, heparin, and fibroblast growth factor-2 (FGF2). FGF2 was loaded into the coacervate at nearly 100% efficiency. In vitro assays demonstrated that the matrix protected FGF2 from proteolytic degradations. FGF2 released from the coacervate was more effective in the differentiation of endothelial cells and chemotaxis of pericytes than free FGF2. One injection of 500 ng of FGF2 in the coacervate elicited comprehensive angiogenesis in vivo. The number of endothelial and mural cells increased significantly, and the local tissue contained more and larger blood vessels with increased circulation. Mural cells actively participated during the whole angiogenic process: Within 7 d of the injection, pericytes were recruited to close proximity of the endothelial cells. Mature vasculature stabilized by vascular smooth muscle cells persisted till at least 4 wk. On the other hand, bolus injection of an identical amount of free FGF2 induced weak angiogenic responses. These results demonstrate the potential of polyvalent coacervate as a new controlled delivery platform. |
| Source: | Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2011 Aug 16;108(33):13444-9. Epub 2011 Aug 1. |
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Harvey Borovetz |
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| Co-PI | Stephen Badylak, Marc Malandro |
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| Title | Coulter Translational Research Award in Biomedical Engineering |
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| Description |
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| Source | Wallace H. Coulter Foundation |
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| Term | 5 Years |
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| Amount: | $3.54 million |
Newsletter Comments or Questions: McGowan@pitt.edu