Professor Cato T Laurencin was invited to the Vatican to meet with Pope Francis and to discuss his work on Regenerative Engineering. During the visit. Dr. Laurencin gave Pope Francis an honorary Cato T. Laurencin Regenerative Engineering Founder’s Award Medal.
This medal, endowed by the Regenerative Engineering Society and the American Institute of Chemical Engineers Foundation, recognizes leadership in the science and practice of convergence research as applied to regeneration.
Dr. Laurencin has made seminal contributions to tissue regeneration, biomaterials science, and nanotechnology. He founded the field of regenerative engineering and has been considered to be the foremost engineer-physician-scientist in the world. His groundbreaking achievements have led to important advances in improving human life. He is the first surgeon to be elected to the National Academy of Sciences, the National Academy of Engineering, the National Academy of Medicine and the National Academy of Inventors. During his visit to the Vatican, Dr. Laurencin provided an important lecture on the field of Regenerative Engineering. He discussed the Hartford Engineering a Limb project aimed at addressing the grand challenge of whole limb regeneration. Laurencin is the University Professor and Albert and Wilda Van Dusen Distinguished Endowed Professor of Orthopaedic Surgery at the University of Connecticut.
A celebratory reception for the new Laurencin Institute was held on February 24 at UConn School of Medicine in Farmington.
We are excited to announce a new institute. It is entitled The Cato T. Laurencin Institute for Regenerative Engineering. “This initiative is only one of the countless number of Dr. Laurencin’s contributions to the development of science and engineering”, says Provost Anne D’Alleva.
Regenerative engineering is a field founded by Professor Cato T. Laurencin. It is described as the convergence of advanced materials sciences, stems cell science, physics, developmental biology, and clinical translation for the regeneration of complex tissues and organ systems. The Cato T. Laurencin Institute for Regenerative Engineering represents a transdisciplinary effort at UConn with a focus on the musculoskeletal area. The Institute integrates medicine, engineering, surgery, biology, physics, chemistry, and statistics/machine learning to enable a powerful platform for addressing scientific and medical problems in the regeneration and healing of complex tissues, organs, or organ systems.
The Cato T. Laurencin Institute of Regenerative Engineering holds to the pillars developed for the first Cato T. Laurencin Institute, namely:
Excellence in Science
Anti-Racism and Justice
Sponsorship and Mentorship
International, National, and Community Action
Transformative Technologies for Humanity
Economic Value Creation
In addition to this endeavor, Dr. Laurencin has created a ground-breaking project. It is entitled, Cato T. Laurencin Innovative Convergence Ventures (CTLICV). The CTLICV invests in next-generation companies based on innovative research conducted created within the Institute and its collaborating partners across UConn and greater university and corporate communities. We seek strong co-investor syndicates to develop products across a range of categories including regenerative engineering, drugs, devices, diagnostics, and digital health. The intent is to fast-track innovative research from bench to bed, with measurable impact on public health, quality of life, reducing societal disparity, and economic development.
CTLICV’s investments are directed at the seed and Series A stages, where it attracts capital and talent into the most difficult-to-fund phase of company development. When we invest, we expect to support each portfolio company through its entire financing lifecycle. We leverage the portfolio investment activity and internal/external relationships to further the mission vision and values of the Institute. Additionally, the fund taps into our experience in starting and growing companies, our expertise in the medical industry, and our network of scientific and business talent to build great companies.
The scientific and educational opportunities being pursued now and in the future at UConn will enable innovation and problem-solving beyond conventional academic boundaries. A core mission of UConn is precisely to foster new ways of thinking and new approaches to answers in medicine, science, engineering, and technology. We invite you to engage with us as we continue our work here at UConn.
