New Directions for Tissue Engineering and Regenerative Medicine Conference to be held in Sonoma, California on July 10-12, 2013

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PI: Robert M NeremProposal Number: 1343937Overview: Tissue engineering and regenerative medicine show great promise for improving human health by restoring damaged and diseased tissue. The field has grown and evolved significantly over the last 25 years and stem cells, specifically specialized engineered stem cells, have emerged as a major contributor to new advancements in regenerative medicine therapies. The worldwide importance of stem cell engineering was the focus of a recent World Technology Evaluation Center (WTEC) report titled Global Assessment of Stem Cell Engineering (WTEC, December 2012). The WTEC panel that conducted the assessment was led by Robert M. Nerem, a pioneering tissue engineering researcher at the Georgia Institute of Technology. The primary purpose of the assessment was to analyze the global status and trends of stem cell engineering and to compare U.S. research and development programs with those abroad. The WTEC report lays out important steps that need to be taken by the U.S. scientific leadership to continue advancements in stem cell technologies. Examples include the need to expand and strengthen international research collaborations, as well as enhancing U.S.-based academic-industry partnerships to successfully translate research into commercial successes. The focus of this workshop is to discuss emerging stem cell and regenerative medicine technologies. The main objective of this workshop is to bring together key global leaders in stem cell engineering and regenerative medicine from academia and industry to (1) discuss the critical issues and challenges facing the further growth and development of tissue engineering and regenerative medicine, and (2) identify future research directions in this field with emphasis on the role of stem cell engineering. The topics that will be discussed include programming stem cells and their environments, stem cell bioprocessing and manufacturing, computational stem cell biology and system analysis, and interface of stem cell technology with applications of the future. Intellectual Merit: The intellectual merit of the proposed workshop is the stimulation of creative, original, and potentially transformative new ideas and concepts and the identification of future directions in the field of tissue engineering and regenerative medicine, with emphasis on the role of stem cell engineering. This workshop is unique as it brings global stem cell engineering experts to discuss the challenges faced both nationally and abroad in the field. Broader Impact: Workshop discussions will help to advance current understanding of the underlying scientific and technological issues and challenges currently impacting stem cells engineering. Information produced from the workshop will be disseminated broadly to the scientific community to enhance scientific and technological understanding. Efforts will be made to involve underrepresented populations, as well as new investigators and trainees.