{"596684":{"#nid":"596684","#data":{"type":"news","title":"REM Nurturing Collaborative Research","body":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003EThirty years ago, long before there was a Petit Institute for Bioengineering and Bioscience, biomedical research in Georgia experienced a big bang with establishment of the Emory\/Georgia Tech Biomedical Technology Research Center and a seed grant program that nurtured faculty interest in collaboration.\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003EThe seed grant required researchers from the two different institutions to bring their respective strengths together on projects designed to improve human health.\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003E\u0026ldquo;That seed grant program was absolutely essential and its influence on success of the Emory-Georgia Tech partnership can\u0026rsquo;t be underestimated,\u0026rdquo; said Bob Nerem, founding director of the Petit Institute, which launched in 1995. \u0026ldquo;It provided a foundation for everything else that has taken place since.\u0026rdquo;\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003EThat spirit of partnership has evolved in many ways, one of the most significant being the Regenerative Engineering and Medicine (REM) research center, which brought the University of Georgia (UGA) and its research strength into the mix with Emory and Georgia Tech, and the seed grant program remains as critical as ever, sparking multidisciplinary collaboration between the three institutions.\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003ERecently, the REM research center awarded this year\u0026rsquo;s seed grants, totaling $700,000 for eight teams of interdisciplinary researchers working to harness the body\u0026rsquo;s own potential to heal or regenerate in response to injury or disease.\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003EHere\u0026rsquo;s a rundown of the projects:\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003E\u0026bull; Project Title:\u003C\/strong\u003E Using Pluripotent Stem Cells to Treat Male-Factor Infertility: Towards a Potential Regenerative Medicine Strategy.\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003E\u0026bull; Principal Investigators:\u003C\/strong\u003E Charles Easley (UGA) and Anthony Chan (Emory)\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003E\u0026bull; Synopsis:\u003C\/strong\u003E The researchers are developing a novel approach for differentiating human embryonic stem cells and induced pluripotent stem cells into advanced spermatogenic lineages. If successful, this proposal would show that functional male gametes can be derived from no greater starting material than a skin biopsy.\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003E\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003E\u0026bull; Project Title:\u003C\/strong\u003E Identification of Molecular and Epigenetic Signatures of Cell Potency and Enhanced Embryonic Stem Cell Reprogramming for Regenerative Biomanufacturing.\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003E\u0026bull; Principal Investigators:\u003C\/strong\u003E Rabindranath De La Fuente (UGA) and Yuhong Fan (Tech)\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003E\u0026bull; Synopsis:\u003C\/strong\u003E The researchers propose to use their recently-developed episomal sensor of histone H4 acetylation to conduct a quantitative analysis of changes in genome-wide chromatin structure and the dynamics of epigenetic reprogramming in real-time. Their studies will provide a genome-wide map of the chromatin regulatory landscape and transcriptome profiles with predictive value to evaluate potency for neuronal differentiation.\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003E\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003E\u0026bull; Project Title:\u003C\/strong\u003E Hydrogels for Mesenchymal Stem Cells to Treat Graft-vs-Host Disease.\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003E\u0026bull; Principal Investigators:\u003C\/strong\u003E Andr\u0026eacute;s J. Garc\u0026iacute;a (Tech), Muna Qayed (Emory)\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003E\u0026bull; Synopsis:\u003C\/strong\u003E The objective of this project is to engineer synthetic hydrogels that encapsulate Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) and promote their survival and expansion in alternative transplant sites, resulting in enhanced immunomodulatory activities for the treatment of Graft vs Host Disease.\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003E\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003E\u0026bull; Project Title:\u003C\/strong\u003E Elucidating Natural Killer Cells as a Cell Therapy for Parkinson\u0026rsquo;s Disease.\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003E\u0026bull; Principal Investigators:\u003C\/strong\u003E Jae-Kyung (Jamise) Lee (UGA) and Levi Wood (Tech)\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003E\u0026bull; Synopsis:\u003C\/strong\u003E The research team\u0026rsquo;s goal is to obtain new data determining if Natural Killer cells have the capacity to protect neurons and modulate microglial activation in the context of a Alpha-synuclein.\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003E\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003E\u0026bull; Project Title:\u003C\/strong\u003E Exploring Mechanosensitive Cues to Enhance Mitochondrial Structure and Function During Regeneration.\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003E\u0026bull; Principal Investigators:\u003C\/strong\u003E Jarrod Call (UGA) and Khalid Salaita (Emory)\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003E\u0026bull; Synopsis:\u003C\/strong\u003E The primary goal is to determine mechanical signals that influence mitochondrial structure and function. The central hypothesis is that mitochondria structure and function are sensitive to mechanical stimuli.\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003E\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003E\u0026bull; Project Title:\u003C\/strong\u003E Pro-Regenerative Immunomodulatory Therapies to Repair Volumetric Muscle Injuries.\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003E\u0026bull; Principal Investigators:\u003C\/strong\u003E Nick Willett (Emory) and Edward Botchwey (Tech)\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003E\u0026bull; Synopsis:\u003C\/strong\u003E The researchers\u0026rsquo; proposed research will investigate whether engineered immune modulatory nanofibers will enhance regenerative capacity in rodent models of volumetric muscle loss (VML).\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003E\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003E\u0026bull; Project Title:\u003C\/strong\u003E Condyle Regenerative Medicine.\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003E\u0026bull; Principal Investigators:\u003C\/strong\u003E Scott Hollister (Tech), Shelly Abramowicz and Steven Goudy (Emory)\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003E\u0026bull; Synopsis:\u003C\/strong\u003E The researchers want to develop a patient specific, 3D printed biologic pedicled flap approach to temporomandibular joint (TMJ) reconstruction. Specifically, they\u0026rsquo;ll design and optimize a porous mandibular condyle scaffold, fabricate the condyle from polycaprolactone (PCL) using 3D printing laser sintering, adsorb bone morphogenetic protein 2 (BMP2) to the scaffold and implant the scaffold in the temporalis muscle. After attaining vascularization and bone growth in the construct at 1 month, the locally pedicled tissue engineered flap will be surgically positioned to function as a mandibular condyle.\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003E\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003E\u0026bull; Project Title:\u003C\/strong\u003E Skeletal Muscle Stem Cells are Novel Regulators of Collateral Blood Vessel Formation.\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003E\u0026bull; Principal Investigators:\u003C\/strong\u003E Laura Hansen and Robert Taylor (Emory), and Young Jang (Tech)\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003E\u0026bull; Synopsis:\u003C\/strong\u003E This project will determine if satellite cells are crucial to collateral vessel formation in a murine peripheral arterial disease (PAD) model as well as investigate if the positive effects of exercise therapy are dependent on satellite cells. The potential ability of satellite cells to restore blood flow through vascular growth and repair muscles damaged from ischemic myopathy makes them a promising and novel therapy for patients with PAD and critical limb ischemia.\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n","summary":null,"format":"limited_html"}],"field_subtitle":[{"value":"Seed Grants awarded to eight interdisciplinary teams from Georgia Tech, Emory, and UGA"}],"field_summary":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003ESeed Grants awarded to eight interdisciplinary teams from Georgia Tech, Emory, and UGA\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n","format":"limited_html"}],"field_summary_sentence":[{"value":"Seed Grants awarded to eight interdisciplinary teams from Georgia Tech, Emory, and UGA"}],"uid":"28153","created_gmt":"2017-09-29 16:02:02","changed_gmt":"2017-09-29 16:02:02","author":"Jerry Grillo","boilerplate_text":"","field_publication":"","field_article_url":"","dateline":{"date":"2017-09-29T00:00:00-04:00","iso_date":"2017-09-29T00:00:00-04:00","tz":"America\/New_York"},"extras":[],"hg_media":{"596683":{"id":"596683","type":"image","title":"REM leadership","body":null,"created":"1506700523","gmt_created":"2017-09-29 15:55:23","changed":"1506700523","gmt_changed":"2017-09-29 15:55:23","alt":"","file":{"fid":"227420","name":"REM leaders - wide.jpg","image_path":"\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/REM%20leaders%20-%20wide.jpg","image_full_path":"http:\/\/hg.gatech.edu\/\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/REM%20leaders%20-%20wide.jpg","mime":"image\/jpeg","size":2518985,"path_740":"http:\/\/hg.gatech.edu\/sites\/default\/files\/styles\/740xx_scale\/public\/images\/REM%20leaders%20-%20wide.jpg?itok=lg2ZqekV"}}},"media_ids":["596683"],"groups":[{"id":"1292","name":"Parker H. Petit Institute for Bioengineering and Bioscience (IBB)"},{"id":"1254","name":"Wallace H. Coulter Dept. of Biomedical Engineering"}],"categories":[],"keywords":[{"id":"126571","name":"go-PetitInstitute"},{"id":"171346","name":"go-rem"},{"id":"1489","name":"Regenerative Medicine"},{"id":"174822","name":"seed grants"},{"id":"249","name":"Biomedical Engineering"},{"id":"175718","name":"biotech research"},{"id":"569","name":"bioengineering"}],"core_research_areas":[{"id":"39441","name":"Bioengineering and Bioscience"}],"news_room_topics":[],"event_categories":[],"invited_audience":[],"affiliations":[],"classification":[],"areas_of_expertise":[],"news_and_recent_appearances":[],"phone":[],"contact":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003E\u003Ca href=\u0022mailto:jerry.grillo@ibb.gatech.edu\u0022\u003EJerry Grillo\u003C\/a\u003E\u003Cbr \/\u003E\r\nCommunications Officer II\u003Cbr \/\u003E\r\nParker H. Petit Institute for\u003Cbr \/\u003E\r\nBioengineering and Bioscience\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n","format":"limited_html"}],"email":["Jerry.grillo@ibb.gatech.edu"],"slides":[],"orientation":[],"userdata":""}}}