and

NJIT TECHNOLOGY AND SOCIETY FORUM

present the first meeting of the

NJIT-Sigma Xi Research Café

Tuesday, September 29, 2009, 4:30 to 6:00 p.m.:

Faculty Dining Area, 3rd Floor, NJIT Campus Center

 

Topic: STEM CELLS: THEIR ORIGINS AND APPLICATIONS BEING EXPLORED AT NJIT

Presenter: Treena Livingston Arinzeh, PhD, Associate Professor and Chair (Interim), Biomedical Engineering Department, NJIT:

 

The Research Café invites you to its opening session. Refreshments will be served, and you can also purchase additional refreshments in the Pub or other Campus Center locations.

ABSTRACT

Since the discovery of the embryonic stem cell about a decade ago, stem cells have been of great interest in the medical community because of their ability to turn into any cell type in the body and therefore, their enormous potential to regenerate any tissue in the body. However, these aren’t the only stem cells. Did you know that stem cells have been used for treating blood disorders in humans for the past several decades? Adult stem cells that come from blood and bone marrow were discovered well be-fore embryonic stem cells. They differ from embryonic stem cells in that they can’t turn into every cell type of the body. They can only turn into certain cell types and therefore, have limited clinical application. The origins of stem cells, their potential and misconceptions will be discussed. Work being conducted here at NJIT includes the regeneration of bone and cartilage for bone fracture and osteoarthritis treatments, spinal cord repair, and liver regeneration.

BIOGRAPHY

Treena Livingston Arinzeh, PhD, an associate professor in the department of biomedical engineering at NJIT, has earned na-tional recognition for her commitment to making adult stem cell therapy a future reality. Her research interests include applied biomaterials and tissue engineering; cell-biomaterial interaction; materials processing; surface characterization and modification of biomaterials; materials testing; in vivo models; tissue-engineering scaffolds for repair of bone and other related musculoskeletal tissues; and nerve tissue regeneration utilizing stem cells.

 

For information, contact Dr. Jay Kappraff at (973)596-3490 or at kappraff@adm.njit.edu

For more information about the NJIT-Sigma Xi Research Café, including future meetings, visit http://www.njit.edu/v2/professional_society/sigmaxi/sx-ScienceCafe.htm

For information about Sigma Xi, visit http://www.njit.edu/v2/professional_society/sigmaxi/

For information about the NJIT Technology and Society Forum, visit http://tsf.njit.edu

Information and directions to NJIT are also available on the Web at http://www.njit.edu/about/visit/gettingtonjit.php