Conferences, Lectures, & Seminars
Events for April
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Seminar in Biomedical Engineering
Mon, Apr 06, 2015 @ 12:30 PM - 01:50 PM
Alfred E. Mann Department of Biomedical Engineering
Conferences, Lectures, & Seminars
Speaker: Hunghao Chu, PhD, Postdoctoral Research Fellow, MIT
Talk Title: Controlled delivery of growth factors using heparin-based coacervates
Abstract: Controlled delivery of growth factors using heparin-based coacervates
Hunghao Chu, Ph.D.
Abstract
Growth factors participating in a variety of biological processes have great potential in regenerative medicine. However, unprotected growth factors degrade quickly in the body and have little efficacy at tissue repair. Delivery of growth factors with different vehicles has been examined to prolong the half-lives of growth factors and therefore increase their therapeutic efficacy. After decades of research, controlled delivery of growth factors still faces some challenges that need to be addressed properly. In my presentation, I will introduce a heparin-based coacervate platform developed for controlled release of heparin-binding growth factors. Heparin, a highly sulfated macromolecule, is used as an anticoagulant clinically. In addition, it has high affinity to a large number of biomolecules, including many growth factors. The interaction between heparin and heparin-binding growth factors is known to adjust their conformation, protect them from proteolytic degradation and regulate their activities. Incorporation of heparin in a delivery vehicle is consequently a strategy to potentiate the bioactivity of growth factors. Different from most delivery strategies employing covalent modification to immobilize heparin, we utilize a synthetic polycation to complex with heparin and form the injectable coacervate. Our experimental finding reveals several advantages of this approach: (i) the delivery vehicle itself being biocompatible and biodegradable does not trigger local or systemic toxicity. (ii) The coacervate protects growth factors from degradation and controls their release in a steady and adjustable fashion. (iii) In a mouse study, fibroblast growth factor-2 (FGF2) delivered by the coacervate (a.k.a FGF2 coacervate) generates more blood vessels than bolus FGF2, which suggests that its bioactivity is significantly enhanced. (iv) In a mouse model mimicking human myocardial infarction, we demonstrate that FGF2 coacervate achieves better therapeutic effects than bolus FGF2 by comparison of cardiac structure, blood vessel density, inflammation, fibrosis and cardiac contractility.
Biosketch
Hunghao Chu is currently a postdoctoral associate at Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Bostonâs Childrenâs Hospital. He received his B.S. in Chemistry from National Taiwan University, M.S. in Molecular and Cell Biology from National Tsing Hua University and Ph.D. in Bioengineering from University of Pittsburgh. His research interests mainly lie in protein- and RNA-based therapeutics. During his Ph.D. study, he worked under the guidance of Prof. Yadong Wang in Biomaterials Foundry and investigated controlled delivery of growth factors in an animal model of myocardial infarction. His dissertation âA coacervate-based platform for growth factor deliveryâ led to the patented technology and several peer-reviewed publications. His research has also been featured by many prestigious awards including the first place of Randall Family Big Idea Competition and the travel scholarship from Society for Biomaterials. His postdoctoral research under the supervision of Prof. Daniel Kohane and Prof. Robert Langer focuses on a biomimetic strategy to improve efficacy of mRNA therapeutic agents.
Host: Stanley Yamashiro
Location: OHE 122
Audiences: Everyone Is Invited
Contact: Mischalgrace Diasanta
This event is open to all eligible individuals. USC Viterbi operates all of its activities consistent with the University's Notice of Non-Discrimination. Eligibility is not determined based on race, sex, ethnicity, sexual orientation, or any other prohibited factor. -
Seminar in Biomedical Engineering
Mon, Apr 13, 2015 @ 12:30 PM - 01:50 PM
Alfred E. Mann Department of Biomedical Engineering
Conferences, Lectures, & Seminars
Speaker: Brian Ziyue Wu, Grodins Graduate Award & Coulter Award Winner (BME PhD Candidate), BME PhD Candidate, member of the Magnetic Resonance Engineering Lab at USC
Talk Title: "Seeing Sleep: Real-time MRI Methods for the Evaluation of Sleep Apnea"
Abstract: Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is a largely neglected disease which can lead to serous consequences. It is characterized by repetitive upper airway (UA) collapse during sleep. Current gold standard of diagnosing sleep apnea is an overnight polysomnography, from which an apnea-hypopnea index (AHI) is derived to indicate the severity of apnea. However, lack of direct anatomical information often limits the value of such sleep studies. UA compliance, (ratio of UA cross-sectional area and pressure), has been proposed to measure airway collapsibility and requires an imaging tool. MRI is a noninvasive technique to measure the cross-sectional area and has many advantages compared to other imaging modalities. But it is fundamentally limited by acquisition speed. Here we present a novel real-time method, which synergistically combines several acceleration techniques including parallel imaging, radial trajectory, compressed sensing and multiband acquisition. We are able to simultaneously acquire four axial airway sites with 90 ms and 1mm resolution, a 33-fold acceleration compared to conventional MRI. Our results show for the first time that a narrower airway site is not always easier to collapse. These findings have the potential to impact future OSA surgical planning.
Host: Stanley Yamashiro
Location: OHE 122
Audiences: Everyone Is Invited
Contact: Mischalgrace Diasanta
This event is open to all eligible individuals. USC Viterbi operates all of its activities consistent with the University's Notice of Non-Discrimination. Eligibility is not determined based on race, sex, ethnicity, sexual orientation, or any other prohibited factor. -
USC Physical Sciences in Oncology Center Seminar Series
Fri, Apr 17, 2015 @ 12:00 PM - 01:00 PM
Alfred E. Mann Department of Biomedical Engineering
Conferences, Lectures, & Seminars
Speaker: Stacey Finley, Ph.D., Assistant Professor - Biomedical Engineering
Talk Title: Computational modeling of anti-angiogenic cancer therapeutics
Abstract: Systems biology approaches, including computational models, provide a framework to test biological hypotheses and optimize effective therapies that aim to inhibit tumor vascularization and growth. I will discuss my work in developing a mechanistic, compartment model of VEGF kinetics and transport in the human body and applying the model to investigate the effects of anti-angiogenic therapies targeting VEGF and its receptors. Interestingly, the model predicts that VEGF in the tumor interstitium can increase or decrease following administration of the VEGF-targeting agent, depending on properties of the tumor microenvironment. The model is useful for understanding the dynamics of VEGF distribution in the body in response to anti-VEGF agents, generating clinically relevant predictions in the areas of drug mechanism of action, biomarker identification, and personalized medicine. I will also present recent work in studying other angiogenic factors to obtain a more comprehensive understanding of the balance of promoters and inhibitors of tumor angiogenesis.
Host: USC PSOC - Dr. Shannon Mumenthaler
More Information: USC PSOC_Monthly Seminar_FINLEY_4-17-15.pdf
Location: HSC - Harkness Auditorium, CSC-250
Audiences: Everyone Is Invited
Contact: Yvonne Suarez
This event is open to all eligible individuals. USC Viterbi operates all of its activities consistent with the University's Notice of Non-Discrimination. Eligibility is not determined based on race, sex, ethnicity, sexual orientation, or any other prohibited factor. -
Seminar in Biomedical Engineering
Mon, Apr 20, 2015 @ 12:30 PM - 01:50 PM
Alfred E. Mann Department of Biomedical Engineering
Conferences, Lectures, & Seminars
Speaker: Michael Anthony Bonaguidi, PhD, Assistant Professor of Stem Cell Biology & Regenerative Medicine
Talk Title: Neural Stem Cells: New Tools Identify Dynamic Origins of Adult Brain Plasticity
Abstract: The adult mammalian brain has the remarkable capability to undergo structural changes by adding newborn cells to selected existing circuitry. Understanding cellular origins and mechanistic regulation of this neural plasticity serves as a model of endogenous regenerative potential. We developed a noninvasive genetic strategy to reveal the basic properties of individual neural stem cells within the adult hippocampus and how neural circuitry couples their behavior with specific tissue demands. Recent computational and systems level approaches provide evidence for the co-existence of neural stem cells with distinct molecular and behavioral identity. A vision of how diverse stem cells adapt and repair the brain will be discussed.
Biography: Biosketch
Michael Bonaguidi, PhD, joined USC as an assistant professor in the Department of Stem Cell Biology and Regenerative Medicine in January 2015 and holds associate membership in the Zilkha Neurogenetic Institute. He received his bachelorâs degree in Biomedical Engineering from Marquette University, PhD in neuroscience from Northwestern University and completed his postdoctoral training at the Johns Hopkins Institute for Cell Engineering. His group investigates brain development, adaptation and aging with the overall goal of identifying and overcoming limits of neural regeneration. They provided evidence of individual stem cell existence within the adult brain. By developing a new visualization approach, they found that these stem cells spawn more stem cells, and form new neurons and critical supporting cells called astroglia. Their subsequent studies have linked adaptation of neural stem cell behavior to changes in the brain under normal conditions and during injury. These stem cells offer intriguing possibilities for treating a variety of conditions, including mood disorders, deficits in social adaptation and brain damage. He has published in high-impact journals such as Cell, Nature, Cell Stem Cell and Nature Neuroscience and received prestigious awards, most recently the NIH Pathway to Independence Fellowship.
Research Impact:
The Bonaguidi Laboratory investigates how stem cells act to adapt and repair the adult brain. Using endogenous neural stem cells as a model system, their approach incorporates principles from neuroscience, single cell molecular and cellular biology, computational and systems biology, imaging and engineering to unravel brain plasticity. The laboratory focuses on the reciprocal interaction between neural stem cells and their surroundings in normal, aging, injured and diseased states. The long-term goal is to evaluate the capacity of endogenous stem cells to serve as a cellular mediator of neural function and as a therapeutic source of cognitive rejuvenation.
Host: Stanley Yamashiro
Location: OHE 122
Audiences: Everyone Is Invited
Contact: Mischalgrace Diasanta
This event is open to all eligible individuals. USC Viterbi operates all of its activities consistent with the University's Notice of Non-Discrimination. Eligibility is not determined based on race, sex, ethnicity, sexual orientation, or any other prohibited factor. -
Seminar in Biomedical Engineering
Mon, Apr 27, 2015 @ 12:30 PM - 01:50 PM
Alfred E. Mann Department of Biomedical Engineering
Conferences, Lectures, & Seminars
Speaker: Vadim Backman, PhD, Professor of Biomedical Engineering, Walter Dill Scott Professor (Northwestern University)
Talk Title: Nanoscale and functional optical imaging for colon cancer diagnostics and risk-stratification
Abstract: Initiation of carcinogenesis is accompanied by alterations in tumor microenvironment, cellular metabolism and epigenetics. Understanding these early events depends on our ability to image these subtle nanoarchitectural and functional processes. The talk discusses a suite of novel fiber-optic and in vitro diagnostic optical imaging techniques that have recently been developed to quantify intracellular and tissue morphology at the nanoscale and provide high-resolution imaging of metabolism and microangiography. The techniques have shown promise as a new platform for highly sensitive, cost-effective and non-invasive colon cancer screening and prognostication.A particularly significant application is colon cancer screening enabled by the detection of field carcinogenesis via the analysis of the nanoarchitecture of rectal cells with the objective to increase the detection rate of screen-relevant colorectal neoplasia while reducing overdiagnosis.
Biography: http://www.bme.northwestern.edu/people/faculty/backman.html
Host: Qifa Zhou/Stanley Yamashiro
Location: OHE 122
Audiences: Everyone Is Invited
Contact: Mischalgrace Diasanta
This event is open to all eligible individuals. USC Viterbi operates all of its activities consistent with the University's Notice of Non-Discrimination. Eligibility is not determined based on race, sex, ethnicity, sexual orientation, or any other prohibited factor. -
Seminar in Biomedical Engineering
Mon, Apr 27, 2015 @ 12:30 PM - 01:50 PM
Alfred E. Mann Department of Biomedical Engineering
Conferences, Lectures, & Seminars
Speaker: Vadim Backman, PhD, Professor of Biomedical Engineering, Walter Dill Scott Professor (Northwestern University)
Talk Title: Nanoscale and functional optical imaging for colon cancer diagnostics and risk-stratification
Abstract: Initiation of carcinogenesis is accompanied by alterations in tumor microenvironment, cellular metabolism and epigenetics. Understanding these early events depends on our ability to image these subtle nanoarchitectural and functional processes. The talk discusses a suite of novel fiber-optic and in vitro diagnostic optical imaging techniques that have recently been developed to quantify intracellular and tissue morphology at the nanoscale and provide high-resolution imaging of metabolism and microangiography. The techniques have shown promise as a new platform for highly sensitive, cost-effective and non-invasive colon cancer screening and prognostication.A particularly significant application is colon cancer screening enabled by the detection of field carcinogenesis via the analysis of the nanoarchitecture of rectal cells with the objective to increase the detection rate of screen-relevant colorectal neoplasia while reducing overdiagnosis.
Biography: http://www.bme.northwestern.edu/people/faculty/backman.html
Host: Qifa Zhou/Stanley Yamashiro
Location: OHE 122
Audiences: Everyone Is Invited
Contact: Mischalgrace Diasanta
This event is open to all eligible individuals. USC Viterbi operates all of its activities consistent with the University's Notice of Non-Discrimination. Eligibility is not determined based on race, sex, ethnicity, sexual orientation, or any other prohibited factor.
