Cellular Approaches to Tissue Engineering and Regeneration

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DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): The University of Pittsburgh seeks continued support for our multidisciplinary and innovative pre-doctoral training in Regenerative Medicine via Cellular Approaches to Tissue Engineering and Regeneration (CATER) training program. The CATER program combines faculty and research expertise from a diverse group of disciplines that combine tissue engineering with molecular and cellular approaches of therapies for human disease and regeneration. Regenerative medicine is truly an interdisciplinary field that brings together scientists from human biology, engineering, medical devices, material sciences, medicine and applied technologies to focus on the repair and replacement of human tissues. One of the most significant challenges in regenerative medicine is developing the next generation of experts in each of the enabling disciplines that must be trained cognizant of the cross-disciplinary challenges and approaches required for successful practice of regenerative medicine. To address this issue we developed the CATER pre-doctoral training program to fill the gaps that often exist in more traditional departmentally-focused research training programs. The goal of the CATER training program is to provide a solid foundation upon which to build a productive and independent career in regenerative medicine for human disease and injury. This goal is accomplished via a highly coordinated and mentored interdisciplinary training program that traverses departments and disciplines, and combines required and elective courses, research and specialized training opportunities. Our history (10-years of funding support) provides evidence that we are accomplishing our training objectives and generating successful scientists. The evolving definition of success for CATER program is recapitulated by the career choices of the past trainees that in essence demonstrates their preparedness and demand, fulfilling the timely need of experts in the area of regenerative medicine in both academics and industry. As CATER program moves into its 10th year, we now appreciate the maturation of the field of regenerative medicine such that a broad variety of technologies are seeking to be commercialized to cross into the area of reimbursable clinical care. As we propose the program for the next five years, we continue to build on our strengths and concurrently embrace the timely concepts and paradigms integral to regenerative medicine today. Our evolving curricula in the program reflects these exciting times and embodies the proverbial concepts of bench to bedside, academic entrepreneurship and translational medicine through rigorous partnerships with the Clinical and Translational Science Institute, the Coulter program and the Office of Technology Management. We thus propose to continue, as a team, train a new generation of scientists practicing regenerative medicine through coordinated, interdisciplinary and rigorous didactic and research training via the CATER program.