I am tremendously grateful to receive the 2023 @NIH Director's New Innovator Award to develop new therapeutic modalities for degenerative glomerulopathies. Many thanks to my mentors, trainees, family, and friends for their support/contributions to this journey. Onward! @MusahLab

Learn more about our work at: https://t.co/pySRcNRGNf & @StemCellEngineer.bsky.social

Sophia dives into some of our work using human stem cell derivatives to engineer patient-specific preclinical models, helping us uncover disease mechanisms and identify new and safe therapeutics.

Check out this new #TEDx talk by an inspiring #MusahLab undergraduate researcher and recent @DukeU graduate, Sophia Leeman! https://t.co/LTgoA1aa8v #STEM #BiomedicalEngineering #PatientSpecificModels #StemCells #PreclinicalModels #MPS

Congratulations to #MusahLab graduate student Yize (Eon) Zhang for leading this work from our team exploring the interface between biomaterials and cell biology! #tissuemodels #mechanobiology #stemcellresearch #tissueengineering #Bioengineering #YAP #synaptopdin #hydrogel

These findings provide a step towards designing better environments for studying podocyte biology and could have implications for improving tissue engineering and kidney disease modeling.

This could explain why traditional/extremely rigid tissue culture substrates often fail to model in vivo-like biological responses in cultured podocytes.

(2) BUT, the cells adopt functional phenotypes when these YAP-activating matrices are compliant—promoting flexible cytoskeletal arrangements instead of rigid architectures.

We showed that: (1) Podocytes—a specialized/post-mitotic cell type found in the kidney's blood filtration unit—prefer matrices that activate YAP, a protein linked to mechanotransduction.

we explored how visceral epithelial cells (podocytes) respond to ECM cues in unexpected ways. Many researchers rely on changes in cell shape or F-actin polymerization to infer how cells respond to matrix elasticity, but these conventional indicators can sometimes be misleading.

Latest research publication from our lab reveals a role for YAP-activating hydrogels in stem cell-derived podocyte differentiation and molecular-level specialization. Full Paper: https://t.co/QsJm4PcqPo Here's what we found:

The Vollum Institute is accepting applications for multiple faculty openings. We are interested in individuals whose research focuses on molecular and cellular neuroscience, genetics, neurodevelopment or signal transduction. #sciencejobs #neurotwitter https://t.co/LnicYkonhZ

https://t.co/ti0AmYMwQg https://t.co/q1fiXO5IvX https://t.co/mzDTTEv0yH https://t.co/2rvpSlsyc9

Check out some of our related work using biomaterial platforms to guide stem cell differentiation and self-renewal and tissue development, function, and disease:  https://t.co/jQVVxJ9rEW https://t.co/9S7QX4n1yS https://t.co/rWrYwVwbgX

In this paper, we highlight the potential of biomaterials to move the field forward.

This article was inspired by our interest & commitment to advancing understanding of human biology by harnessing the translational power of stem cells & personalized organoid models to bring life-saving therapeutics to patients.

Congratulations to #MusahLab PhD student Hamidreza Arzaghi @H_Arzaghi for his remarkable contributions to this work!

Our newest publication is out in @naturemethods! It highlights the potential of biomaterials in realizing the translational power of organoids. #MusahLab Full article: https://t.co/RHu6DwTQui

Congratulations to the #MusahLab team of graduate and undergraduate students for their remarkable collaborative efforts!

Here's the related research article that inspired this work:

Excited to share our new review article published in IJMS on #fenestrated #endothelium across organs! We explore strategies to advance #vascularized tissue models, including a new method to induce fenestrated endothelium from #stemcells. https://t.co/Kh3mK8oCf7