Author: Nick Evans

Musculoskeletal Disorders Research Advisory Group Versus Arthritis

PART 2 Research Priority Setting in Musculoskeletal Disorders 2020/2021

Ethics Approval Reference: R71769/RE003 (Medical Sciences Interdivisional Research Ethics Committee, University of Oxford)

The Musculoskeletal Disorders Research Advisory Group Versus Arthritis* is carrying out an online research prioritisation exercise. In this second part of the exercise, we’re seeking opinions on the top priorities for musculoskeletal disorders research.

We want to hear from you if you are, or care for, a person living with a musculoskeletal condition, a researcher, a healthcare professional, an industry representative, a research funder, a healthcare provider or government policy maker.

Part 1 of our research prioritisation exercise was completed between November 2020 – January 2021. From peoples’ responses to our first survey, we produced a list of research areas into musculoskeletal conditions. By deciding what are the most important areas for you will help us to identify, shape and champion the areas of research to better understand and manage musculoskeletal conditions. This is a critical part of planned work by the Musculoskeletal Disorders Research Advisory Group Versus Arthritis throughout 2020 and 2021.

The survey is now live and will remain open until 5pm on 28 September 2021 and should take no more than 40 minutes to complete. Take part here: https://www.smartsurvey.co.uk/s/0TYU8K/

Please use the Twitter post below to share this with people you know who may be interested. That may include your professional networks.

Help Versus Arthritis highlight the most important research into understanding and managing musculoskeletal conditions. Take our second survey. https://www.smartsurvey.co.uk/s/0TYU8K/

*The Musculoskeletal Disorders Group includes the following disorders: osteoarthritis, crystal diseases such as gout, primary and secondary causes of musculoskeletal pain including regional and widespread pain (such as back pain, shoulder pain and tendinopathy, other regional pain syndromes and fibromyalgia), hypermobility, metabolic bone disorders (such as osteoporosis and rare diseases) and musculoskeletal injuries caused by acute traumatic events.

Minutes of 2021’s AGM are now available to members at this link:

AGM minutes 2021TCES AGM 2021_to use

Dear all, 

Following my email last week I am pleased to let you know the abstract submission deadline for TCES has been extended to 14th May 2021.

Please submit your abstract via this link: 

https://tces2021.eng.ed.ac.uk/

Keep an eye out on the site for further details about the meeting, keynotes and schedule which will be available soon. 

Best wishes,

Anthony Callanan

TCES conference organiser 2021

Please join us for a seminar given by Professor Martin Harmsen (https://www.rug.nl/staff/m.c.harmsen/).

Professor Martin Harmsen 

University of Groningen, Netherlands

Thursday April 22nd 

10am

“Topographical and extracellular matrix cues and clues in stem cell plasticity.”

Dear TCES members,

Please join us for the next talk in the TCES Virtual Seminar Series, which will be on Thursday 11^th March from 10:00-11:00hrs GMT. Our seminar will feature Dr Luca Urbani & Lola Ajayi of the Institute of Hepatology, Foundation for Liver Research, speaking on “The extracellular matrix in liver disease, liver cancer and bioengineering for disease modelling”

For pre-registration and to receive an automated reminder please visit Eventbrite here: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/tces-virtual-seminar-series-march-2021-tickets-136621644015

Alternatively you can join on the day via Zoom using the link here: https://ukri.zoom.us/j/93984033480

The seminar will be interactive so you will be able to ask questions at the end of the talk.

We look forward to seeing you there!

Best wishes,

Hadi Mirmalek-Sani and the TCES committee.

Dr Gavin Jeffries, Chief Scientific Officer for Fluicell

Patterning tissues for cell microenvironment engineering using the Biopixlar single-cell resolution bioprinter

The progress of bioprinting technologies and applications has accelerated tremendously in recent years. However, reproducing the complexity of tissue biology, especially mimicking the architecture of cellular microenvironment on an individual cell level remains a challenge.

In this presentation we will demonstrate how Fluicell employs hydrodynamically confined devices to build biological tissues from individual cells. Furthermore, we will demonstrate the advantages of patterning tissues and controlling the microenvironment using an open-volume microfluidic approach.

Who should attend: scientists in the fields of cell biology, cancer, regenerative medicine and associated research areas, who are looking to generate in-vitro models using multiple cell types, with exquisite control over cell positioning.

Please register via the following link,  https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/1516075256174/WN_Bn8H0C9KRkWNTHekK5IBwA.

The first TCES seminar for 2021 will be given by Dr Anthony Callanan, School of Engineering, University of Edinburgh.  

Thursday 14th January 2021 – 10:00 GMT 
“Utilising Electrospun Methodologies to alter Cell Responses”

Join the session on Blackboard Collaborate: https://eu.bbcollab.com/guest/317560f69ecb4a29a5f1ed84f6980a7f

https://eu.bbcollab.com/guest/317560f69ecb4a29a5f1ed84f6980a7f

We would like to invite you to the second talk in our winter virtual seminar series, which will be this Thursday 10^th December from 10:00-11:00hrs.

Our seminar will feature Dr Luca Urbani & Lola Ajayi of the Institute of Hepatology, Foundation for Liver Research, speaking on “The extracellular matrix in liver disease, liver cancer and bioengineering for disease modelling” The link to join on the day is https://ukri.zoom.us/j/99047140403

“Modular PEG hydrogels for organoid-based disease modelling” seminar by Dr Eileen Gentleman, King’s College, London

About this Event

Due to the success of our virtual seminar series over the summer, we have decided to continue them each month.

The first seminar will be on Thursday 19th November from 1130-1215 and will feature Dr Eileen Gentleman from King’s College.

The abstract is below and the link to join is: https://eu.bbcollab.com/guest/9d08cfa20c8442b39a08303020194a8b

This seminar is hosted by the University of Southampton.

Please register on this Eventbrite page.

An abstract is below.

Best wishes

The TCES committee.

Modular PEG hydrogels for organoid-based disease modelling

Dr Eileen Gentleman, King’s College, London

Thursday 19th November 2020, 1130am

Pathological matrix remodelling plays a central role in many human diseases, but is challenging to study as in vitro models often cannot replicate the complex 3D cell-matrix interactions that drive pathologies. In this seminar, I will discuss how we built a 3D model of the human gut that allowed us to uncover an unexpected role for a rare immune cell type called ILC1 in driving gut fibrosis in patients with inflammatory bowel diseases. We used molecular dynamics simulations to design PEG hydrogels that cross-link quickly, but can still mimic the stiffness of normal intestinal tissue. We then co-cultured encapsulated human intestinal organoids with ILC1, and using a combination of atomic force microscopy force spectroscopy and multiple particle tracking microrheology, found that ILC1 drive intestinal matrix remodelling through a balance of MMP9-mediated matrix degradation and TGFβ1-driven fibronectin deposition. Our findings demonstrate the potential of using hydrogels in disease modelling, and open the possibility of unravelling how pathological matrix remodelling contributes to disease.

Eileen Gentleman is a Senior Research Fellow and Principal Investigator in the Centre for Craniofacial and Regenerative Biology at King’s College London.

She joined Imperial College London in 2005 as post-doctoral research associate (Stevens Group) after completing her PhD in Biomedical Engineering (Tulane University, USA). In 2011, she was awarded a Wellcome Trust Research Career Development Fellowship and moved to King’s where her research focuses on developing biomaterials to modulate the physical and biological properties of the 3D cell niche to control stem cell differentiation for tissue engineering. Her work has been published in Nature Materials, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences USA, and Biomaterials.

Eileen has received funding awards from the Wellcome Trust, the Rosetrees Trust, the Royal Society and Orthopaedic Research UK, and is a recipient of both a Wellcome Image Award (2016) and an MIT Koch Institute Image Award (2016). The Orthopaedic Research Society named her as a finalist for their New Investigator Recognition Award (2010) and in 2013 her work in regenerative medicine was recognised with a prestigious Philip Leverhulme Prize.

Dear Colleagues,

On behalf of the Cardiff Institute of Tissue Engineering and Repair (CITER) Research Committee I am pleased to notify you of details for this year’s CITER Annual Scientific Meeting 2020. The two-day meeting is taking place between 14th – 15th September and is being held online. Please note there will be no fee to attend this meeting.

The Programme comprises of six sessions over the two days and four research themes including:

·        Immunology, Infection and Inflammation;

·        Applied Healthcare Technology;

·        Mind, Brain and Neurosciences;

·        Cancer

There are four keynote speakers relevant to each aforementioned theme, invited guest speakers and talks from our bursary awardees on how the CITER funding has allowed for collaborations of an interdisciplinary nature and any future work.

Our keynote speakers are:

·        Professor Yamni Nigam, Swansea University

·        Professor Philip Rowe, University of Strathclyde

·        Dr Zameel Cader, University of Oxford

·        Professor Xin Lu, University of Oxford

The meeting provides an excellent means of encouraging the participation of academic staff and students to present their research in either a poster or delivering a talk in a supportive but critical environment which helps your career development. In addition, the meeting provides an excellent opportunity for students and early stage researchers to Chair academic sessions.

To book your space please register via Eventbrite https://www.eventbrite.com/e/citer-annual-scientific-meeting-2020-online-tickets-90931106387

Additional details attached.  If you have any queries please email al-amrim@cardiff.ac.uk