AEM Seminar: Vascular Smooth Muscle Cell Mechano-Adaptation
Patrick Alford, Associate Professor, Biomedical Engineering, University of Minnesota
2:30 PM on 2018-03-09
Akerman 319
Abstract:
Arteries exist in a dynamic mechanical environment, necessitating constant adaptation to evolving forces to maintain their integrity. Mathematical models could be used clinically to systematically predict dysfunctional vascular mechano-adaptation, but current models are incomplete because the complex physiology of mechano-adaptation is not well enough understood. In this talk I will focus on our group’s recently work developing in vitro and in silico models for characterizing vascular smooth muscle cell mechanics and adaptive remodeling for use in multi-scale models of vascular disease. These approaches will then be applied to better understand the dynamics of vascular remodeling in hypertension and aneurysm growth.
Bio:
Dr. Alford received his Ph.D. in Biomedical Engineering in 2007 from Washington University in St. Louis, where he developed elasticity-based theoretical models of tissue growth and remodeling in arteries and early organogenesis. He was then a post-doc at Harvard University where he developed microfabricated and tissue engineered models for studying cellular mechanics in injury. In 2011 he joined the Department of Biomedical Engineering at the University of Minnesota and was promoted to Associate Professor in 2017. His current work primarily focuses on the biomechanics and mechanotransduction of vascular tissue and vascular smooth muscle cells, as well as traumatic brain injury. His research is supported by the National Science Foundation, National Institutes of Health, and the American Heart Association.