Today dozens of students, faculty and staff gathered in Friend’s Hall to enjoy an engaging presentation by Susmita Bose, Ph.D. Dr. Bose presented on 3D Printing in Fabrication of Biomedical Devices and Drug Delivery for Bone Disorders. A Q&A session was held following the presentation where attendees had an opportunity to dive deeper into her intriguing concepts.

The Connecticut Convergence Institute would like to thank Dr. Bose for joining us and sharing her wealth of expertise!

On June 6^th members of the Connecticut Convergence Institute attended the 2019 Hartford Youth Scholars Celebrations Gala as a Change Agent sponsor for the event. With over 300 supporters in attendance, the event raised over $188,000.00 to help support the program throughout the year! The event acknowledges and celebrates the academic achievement of the graduating high school and college Hartford Youth Scholars.

The Hartford Youth Scholars’ primary objective is to place Scholars who complete the program at four-year colleges with the preparation to be successful in the postsecondary environment, and continue to support them through college graduation. HYS fulfills a mission of creating lifetime opportunities for underserved Hartford children through education. The program identifies and recruits highly motivated Hartford middle school students, preparing them for a rigorous high school education and assists them in gaining acceptance and financial assistance at top independent schools in the region with proven records of college placement.

 

 

 

Synthesis, Physicochemical Analysis, and Side Group Optimization of Degradable Dipeptide-Based Polyphosphazenes as Potential Regenerative Biomaterials depicts the synthetic and design flexibility of polyphosphazene polymers that provides a versatile platform for the fine-tuning and modulation of material properties. This property control ultimately leads to a class of biomaterials with a wide range of physicochemical and biological properties that can meet specific requirements for different tissue regenerative engineering and other biomedical applications. The composition‒structure‒properties relationships of the polyphosphazene biomaterials are fully presented. The image shows the scheme of the macromolecular substitution, the second image shows the flexible platform provided by the macromolecular substitution and hydrogen bonding capability of the dipeptide side groups, and the third shows the resultant materials with a wide range of properties that can be adopted in many different regenerative purposes. The two-headed arrow indicates a wide range and diversity.

CT Convergence Institute contributors- Dr. Cato T. Laurencin, Kenneth S. Ogueri, Riley H. Blumenfield, Jorge L. Escobar Ivirico

To be discussed:

• Basics of ethical human subjects research and the role of the IRB
• Ethical conduct of human subjects research and the regulations
• Basics of informed consent process

Instructors

Julian Ford, PhD

Professor, Department of Psychiatry

UConn Health

 

Michelle Slivinsky

Regulatory Specialist, UConn Health

To be discussed:

• How to pick an academic journal in which to publish
• The roles of authors, editors, and publishers
• Peer-review systems
• Publication ethics

Instructor

Kevin Lo, PhD

Assistant Professor
UConn Health, Department of Medicine, Endocrinology
UConn Stem Cell Institute
Department of Biomedical Engineering
Institute of Materials Science (IMS)

To be discussed:

• Differences between resume and curriculum vitae (CV)
• General format and style, sections, and things to include on a CV
• The purpose of personal statements for professional programs
• Identifying and communicating skills and personal qualities on CV and personal statement

Instructor

Anthony Vella, PhD
Professor and Chair

UConn Health, Boehringer Ingelheim Chair in Immunology

Associate Dean of Research Mentoring and Career Development

A Q&A session where you can ask all your questions about applying to graduate school, attending graduate school, life after graduate school, and why to consider graduate school in the first place.

Instructors

Christopher Heinen, PhD

Associate Professor, Department of Medicine
Investigator, Neag Comprehensive Cancer Center and Center for Molecular Oncology
Director of Postdoctoral Affairs

Kimberly Dodge-Kafka, PhD

Associate Professor, Department of Cell Biology
Calhoun Cardiology Center

Both Kevin Manning, Psychiatry and Erin Mead, Medicine of the 2016 Pre-K Scholar Award cohort were recently notified of funding for their K awards. The Connecticut Convergence Institute congratulates them on their hard work and expertise.

The Pre-K Scholar Award Program is a 2-year interactive program designed to equip junior faculty with the knowledge and competencies to effectively apply for an NIH Research Career Development Awards (K award) as well as become leaders in clinical and translational science. The long-term goal is to increase the pipeline of researchers applying for K awards and a culture that supports this goal.

The Pre-K Scholar Award Program curriculum assists faculty in writing a successful NIH K award by focusing on finding mentorship, writing specific aims, developing research plan, determining career development needs, obtaining letters of support, institutional support, etc. Pre-K Scholars are awarded 30% protected time, as well as funding for travel to national conferences.

Named in honor of a distinguished member of the Society For Biomaterials, Cato T. Laurencin, M.D., Ph.D., the Travel Fellowship supports under-represented minorities in the field of biomaterials by providing undergraduate student resources to attend the annual meeting of the Society For Biomaterials, and to become a member of the Society. The goal of this initiative is to stimulate and encourage recipients to pursue a career in biomaterials.

Studies conducted by the National Science Foundation and others have concluded that African-Americans, Latinos, Native-Americans and Native Alaskans are disproportionally under-represented in the fields of Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM). Their underrepresentation represents a barrier to excellence in these fields.

This travel fellowship includes registration, airfare, hotel, transfers, and meals to the SFB Annual Meeting and Exposition held annually. Each awardee will also be given a complimentary membership in the Society For Biomaterials and assigned a graduate student mentor to guide them through the annual meeting, and help them pursue their advanced degree and career goals.

 

On June 13^th Dr. Cato Laurencin delivered the keynote speech at The Pearl Seiden Symposium in Tissue Engineering and Regenerative Medicine at Technion – Israel Institute of Technology. Dr. Laurencin presented his expertise on Regenerative Engineering: The Future of Tissue Regeneration.

The Pearl Seiden Symposium represents the apex of research in the field of regenerative medicine and stem cell research. Throughout the event experts in the field presented and discussed significant achievements in the field of Regenerative Medicine – Regenerative Treatment Models,  Soft Tissue Replacement, Cell Therapy, Stem Cell Bioprocessing, Immunomodulation Therapy, 3D-Biopringting, Biomaterials, Artificial Organ, Applications of Tissue Engineering, and Stem Cell Technologies.