Achievement

One current trainee, Andrew Breidenbach, is working directly on a tissue engineering and developmental biology project with two former IGERT trainees, Nathanial Dyment and Kirsten Kinneberg. The project involves tracking the fate of differentiating mesenchymal progenitor cells and the resulting maturation of the near extracellular matrix. Mr. Breidenbach is learning novel imaging methods (3-D, two photon, reporter fluorescence) to monitor tenogenic markers and signaling pathways, some of which are real-time and non-invasive. The goal of the project is to understand how to stimulate and control genetic expression and protein synthesis and assembly to rapidly and effectively create functional tissue engineered constructs. The specific growth factors that are chosen are based on signals observed during initial development of the tissue midsubstance and its insertion into bone. The trainee will learn 3-D imaging techniques for tracking fibropositors from Dr. Kadler in Manchester, UK.