Willerth named a young innovator in cellular and molecular bioengineering

Dr. Stephanie Willerth (engineering/medical sciences), who holds the Canada Research Chair in biomedical engineering, was recently named one of the 2015 Young Innovators in Cellular and Molecular Bioengineering. As part of the award, her group paper was published in the Young Innovators special issue of the journal Cellular and Molecular Bioengineering in August. The study extends the work done in the eponymous Willerth Lab—engineering tissue that can be transplanted into humans to treat diseases of the nervous system like Parkinson’s or to repair spinal cord damage. The paper describes experiments using drug-releasing microscopic particles, called “microspheres,” into pluripotent stem cells—adult cells that can be genetically modified to become muscle, blood, heart or nerve cells. The work begins what promises to be a revolutionary tool for regenerative medicine.