U-M scientists have received a $3-million, five-year grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to develop a new interdisciplinary program to train tomorrow’s leaders in regenerative science.

Researchers in this intriguing new area of science hope to develop cell-based and tissue engineering therapies that can repair damaged tissue or replace dysfunctional organs. The field’s promise has generated intense interest among researchers in the scientific, medical and biotechnology communities, but the transition from basic research to patient therapies has been extremely slow.

“There are a handful of new treatments available, either on the market or in clinical trials, but we still have major obstacles to overcome if regenerative medicine is ever going to live up to its potential,” says Steven A. Goldstein, the Henry Ruppenthal Family Professor of Orthopaedic Surgery, who will direct the program.

“Many of these barriers stem from the fact that, while regenerative medicine is inherently interdisciplinary, most researchers’ advanced training is still limited to one relatively narrow field of science or medicine,” Goldstein says. “Without a common base of core competencies across many disciplines, it’s difficult for scientists to even communicate, much less interpret or integrate knowledge. The program’s goal is to train teams of engineers, biologists and clinicians in these core competencies.”

“To succeed in this dynamic and complex field, scientists must understand developmental biology—especially stem cell biology—in addition to extra-cellular matrix development, cell signaling, tissue structure and animal models, so they can translate these principles to the human clinical trial setting,” says Dr. William V. Giannobile, a William K. and Mary Anne Najjar Professor of Dentistry, who will serve as the center’s associate director. “Today’s universities simply aren’t designed to train graduate students and fellows in all these disciplines simultaneously.”

Each year, the program will enroll a total of 12 doctoral students, postdoctoral fellows and clinical fellows selected by a review committee of interdisciplinary faculty. Initial training will focus on regenerative science as applied to the musculoskeletal system, but Goldstein and Giannobile hope to expand the program to other clinical areas in the future.

More than 30 faculty members from the Medical School, Dental School and College of Engineering will be involved in the new training program—either serving on advisory boards or as research mentors, or by developing curriculum and core competencies.

NIH funded the training program as part of its Roadmap for Medical Research, a series of far-reaching initiatives designed to transform the nation’s medical research capabilities and speed the movement of research discoveries from the laboratory bench to the bedside.