Ngan F. Huang is an Associate Professor in the Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery at Stanford University and Research Career Scientist at the Veterans Affairs Palo Alto Health Care System. Dr. Huang completed her BS in Chemical Engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, followed by a PhD in bioengineering from the University of California Berkeley & University of California San Francisco Joint Program in Bioengineering. Prior to joining the faculty, she was a postdoctoral scholar in the Division of Cardiovascular Medicine at Stanford University. Her laboratory investigates the interactions between stem cells and extracellular matrix microenvironment for engineering cardiovascular tissues to treat cardiovascular and musculoskeletal diseases. Recent research focuses on the role of microgravity for drug screening of engineered muscle tissue. Dr. Huang has authored over 90 publications and patents, including those in Nat Med, PNAS, and Circ Res. She has received numerous honors, including a NIH K99/R00 Career Development Award, Fellow of the American Heart Association, a Young Investigator award from the Society for Vascular Medicine, a Young Investigator Award from the Tissue Engineering and Regenerative Medicine International Society-Americas, and a Rising Star award at the Cell & Molecular Bioengineering conference. She recently received the Society for Biomaterials Mid-Career award and the Alan Hirsch Mid-Career Award in Vascular Medicine from the American Heart Association. She has active or completed projects funded by the NIH, NSF, AHA, Department of Defense, California Institute of Regenerative Medicine, and Department of Veteran Affairs.

Website: http://huanglab.stanford.edu

Abstract

Towards Personalization and Advanced Manufacturing of Stem Cell Therapies

Stem cell therapies have been tested in a variety of disease settings including cardiovascular disease like peripheral artery disease (PAD). However, results from clinical trials show mixed results. In talk this we will first overview the state of stem cell therapy in clinical and preclinical studies. Then we describe the role of lifestyle choices, focusing on chronic nicotineexposure, in contributing to biological responses to stem cell therapy. Using a preclinical model of PAD, we show that chronic nicotine exposure affects the ability of animals to respond positively to stem cell therapy. This work underscores the importance of lifestyle choices when customizing therapeutic strategies to treat individuals with PAD.