IMSE Seminar with Fabrisia Ambrosio on Extracellular Vesicles
Fabrisia Ambrosio from University of Pittsburgh, will be presenting the seminar "Forever Young: Targeting Youthful Signals in Circulating Extracellular Vesicles Through Engineering and Exercise"
The potential of blood to stimulate health and vitality has piqued the imagination of writers and scientists since time immemorial. In the first century AD, individuals with diseases were in the habit of drinking the blood of fallen gladiators with the belief it would restore good health. Although this practice has (thankfully!) long been discredited, more recent and sophisticated studies have revived interest in the potential of young blood to restore a youthful regenerative response to aged tissues. To date, investigations into the mechanisms underlying the beneficial effect of young blood on healing cascades have primarily focused on circulating proteins. However, accumulating evidence suggests that extracellular vesicles (EVs) found in fluids throughout the body may play a previously unappreciated role in the regulation of tissue health. EVs are membrane-enclosed paracrine mediators that traffic between anatomically remote sites to regulate physiological function and pathologic processes in target cells. In her presentation, Dr. Ambrosio will summarize recent work from her laboratory identifying an age-related disruption in the transfer of information from circulating EVs to target skeletal muscle stem cells and the impact of this disrupted communication flow on skeletal muscle regeneration. Towards the development of novel EV-based therapeutic strategies to counteract these declines, Dr. Ambrosio will share ongoing work employing synthetic and rehabilitative strategies designed to promote functional skeletal muscle regeneration in an elderly population.
Dr. Fabrisia Ambrosio is an associate professor of the Department of Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation at the University of Pittsburgh and Director of Rehabilitation for UPMC International. Dr. Ambrosio’s research has the long-term goal of developing innovative approaches to improve skeletal muscle healing and functional recovery. Her translationally-oriented laboratory investigates underlying mechanisms by which mechanotransductive signals can be used to enhance endogenous and/or donor stem cell function after injury or in the setting of disease. Dr. Ambrosio has published and recorded several educational modules on the topic of Regenerative Rehabilitation and has assumed international leadership roles in several work group efforts to promote the integration of regenerative medicine technologies with rehabilitation approaches. She is the lead director of the Alliance for Regenerative Rehabilitation Research & Training (AR3T), an NIH-funded center that supports the expansion of scientific knowledge, expertise, and methodologies across the domains of rehabilitation science and regenerative medicine. Dr. Ambrosio is also the Founding Course Director of the Annual International Symposium on Regenerative Rehabilitation and the Founding Director of the International Consortium for Regenerative Rehabilitation, which includes 16 partnering institutions representing North America, Europe, and Asia. In 2022, she was inducted into the American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering (AIMBE) College of Fellows.
Faculty, students, and the general public are invited.
