Bioreactor Center for Heart and Lung Regeneration
Tissue Engineering Resource Center: TR&D3
Using advanced imaging-enabled bioreactors to grow and repair damaged lungs and hearts for people with lung disease, cystic fibrosis, or heart injury.
Quick facts
| Grant type | NIH-funded research |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Columbia University Health Sciences NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (New York, United States) |
| Project ID | NIH-11397035 on NIH RePORTER |
What this research studies
This center builds lab devices called imaging-enabled bioreactors that mimic breathing and blood flow while watching tissues grow. They use donor lungs and lab models of cystic fibrosis to recreate disease conditions outside the body and try ways to repair or regenerate tissue. The team combines living cells, biodegradable scaffolds, and tightly controlled oxygen, pressure, and nutrients to measure how tissues heal and respond. The goal is to make damaged organs safer for transplant and to guide future treatments for people with lung or heart damage.
Who could benefit from this research
Good fit: People with severe lung disease (including cystic fibrosis), candidates for lung transplant, or patients recovering from heart attacks are the most directly connected to this work.
Not a fit: Patients with conditions unrelated to lung or heart disease or those needing immediate emergency care are unlikely to receive direct benefit from this lab-based work.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: Could lead to new ways to repair or regenerate lungs and hearts, making more organs usable for transplant and improving treatments for cystic fibrosis and heart injury.
How similar studies have performed: Related lab and ex vivo studies have shown promising steps in growing and repairing tissues, but fully developed clinical treatments remain experimental.
Where this research is happening
New York, United States
- Columbia University Health Sciences — New York, United States (Active)
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Vunjak-Novakovic, Gordana — Columbia University Health Sciences
- Study coordinator: Vunjak-Novakovic, Gordana
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page below.