Engineered protein materials to study wound healing and blood vessels
Official title: Probing Cell Signaling Complexity in Wound Healing with Engineered Protein Materials
Funded at University of New England · NIH-11429158 · Data updated 2026-11-12
A researcher team at the University of New England is studying how the environment around a protein changes its behavior to better understand wound healing and blood vessel formation.
Quick facts
| Grant type | NIH-funded research |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | University of New England NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Biddeford, United States) |
| Project start | September 1, 2026 |
| Project end | May 31, 2031 |
| Funding year | 2026 |
| Award (this year) | $390,500 |
| NIH project number | 1R35GM166453-01 |
| Project ID | NIH-11429158 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Ideal candidates are patients with wounds or vascular conditions where biomaterials-based therapies could be used in future trials.
✕Less likely to help
Patients without wounds or vascular conditions may not directly benefit from this study.
What this research studies
This project uses specially designed protein materials that respond to stimuli to examine how proteins interact with ligands like VEGF receptors. The team will look at how the way a ligand is presented (soluble, on a cell membrane, or inside biomaterials) changes receptor binding, signaling, and trafficking in vascular cells. They will measure binding strength, kinetics, and stoichiometry for VEGFR1 and Nrp1 in different states, and explore how protein phase separation affects these processes. Additionally, the researchers have observed that their polymer may speed up recovery from wound-related pain in mice and will use the kidney as a model system to study wound biology and vascular responses.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this work could lead to smarter biomaterials that promote faster wound healing and better control of blood vessel behavior.
How similar studies have gone: Previous studies with protein-based materials show potential to modulate signaling and healing, but this project explores new presentation states and pain-related effects, which is innovative.
Where this research is happening
-
University of New England
Biddeford, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Balog, Eva Rose Murdock — University of New England
- Study coordinator: Balog, Eva Rose Murdock
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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.