160 College St.
Toronto
ON
Dr. Johnna Temenoff
PhD Georgia Tech/Emory University
After rotator cuff tendon tear, marked degeneration of the attached muscle is apparent clinically, with both fibrous and fatty infiltration of the tissue. Our laboratory is working on delivery strategies for biologics, including proteins and cells, that might slow or reverse this degeneration. In particular, our laboratory has focused on “jump-starting” host regenerative processes through use of glycosaminoglycan (GAG)-based biomaterials for release of cytokines to promote the recruitment of pro-healing cell populations, such as proresolving macrophages, and mesenchymal stromal cells (MSCs), into the muscle. In other work, we have explored priming strategies for MSCs to alter their immunomodulatory properties as a means to reduce inflammation, such as that which occurs in muscle after rotator cuff tendon tear.
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Dr. Johnna S. Temenoff is the Carol Ann and David D. Flanagan Professor the Coulter Department of Biomedical Engineering at Georgia Tech/Emory University. She is also currently the Deputy Director of a NSF Engineering Research Center in Cell Manufacturing Technologies (CMaT). Scientifically, Dr. Temenoff is interested in tailoring the molecular interactions between glycosaminoglycans and proteins/cells for use in regenerative medicine applications. Her laboratory focuses primarily on promoting repair after injuries to the tissues of the shoulder, including cartilage, tendon, and muscle. Dr. Temenoff has been honored with several prestigious awards, such as the NSF CAREER Award, Arthritis Foundation Investigator Award and Society for Biomaterials (SFB) Clemson Award for Contributions to the Literature, and was named to the College of Fellows of the American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineers (AIMBE), as a Fellow of the Biomedical Engineering Society (BMES) and as a Fellow of Biomaterials Science and Engineering, International Union of Societies for Biomaterials Science and Engineering (IUSBSE). She has co-authored a highly successful introductory textbook – Biomaterials: The Intersection of Biology and Materials Science, by J.S. Temenoff and A.G. Mikos (now in a 2nd edition), for which Dr. Temenoff and Dr. Mikos were awarded the American Society for Engineering Education’s Meriam/Wiley Distinguished Author Award for best new engineering textbook.