Department

Dr. Badjic will present a seminar on Friday, October 3, 2008.

Talk title/abstract to be provided in the near future.

Dr. Gunnoe will present a lecture on Tuesday, October 7, 2008.

Title: Development of Homogeneous Catalysts for the Conversion of C-H Bonds

Abstract: Greater than 90% of materials produced by the chemistry industry are derived from a handful of basic hydrocarbon building blocks. Typically, synthetic methods for the conversion of these compounds into higher value functionalized materials are capital and energy intensive. With rising demand for fossil resources, the development of new catalyst technologies for the selective and efficient functionalization of simple hydrocarbons is of increasing importance. The presentation will focus on fundamental studies of metal-mediated activation of C-H bonds including incorporation into catalytic cycles and opportunities for enhanced selectivity of large-scale commodity chemical processes.

Dr. Hong will present a seminar on Tuesday, October 14, 2008.

Talk Title: "Massive Assembly of Carbon Nanotube/Nanowire-based Nano-Platforms for Biological Detection and Signal Measurements: Biomolecules, Membrane Proteins, and Cells"

Abstract: Carbon nanotubes (CNTs) and nanowires (NWs) have been drawing attention for highly-sensitive nano-biosensors and biological signal measurements. However, one of the major stumbling blocks holding back such applications is a lack of reliable mass-production methods for CNT/NW-based devices. This presentation will first briefly discuss how to mass-produce CNT/NW-based sensor transducers (named here as "nano-platform") for biological measurements [1,2]. Then, we will talk about several specific applications such as CNT-based biosensors integrated with CMOS chips, olfactory receptor-based odorant sensors, tissue engineering [3], and single-ion-channel monitoring of a live cell.

Dr. Pross will present a seminar on Tuesday, October 21, 2008.

Talk Title: "How Can a Chemical System Act Purposefully? Bridging between Life and Non-Life"

Abstract: Chemistry enables us to understand the properties of chemical systems based on their chemical structure. For example, we understand why water is soft, why ice is hard, and why metals are shiny and conduct electricity. However this kind of understanding is lacking for the basic properties of living systems. In particular, one of living systems’ most striking characteristics, already evident at the single cell level, is their purposeful (teleonomic) character, but a chemical understanding of that character and, in particular, how it might have emerged, remains missing. In this talk we will explore the chemical nature of purpose (teleonomy) within a general framework that attempts to further clarify the physico-chemical relationship between animate and inanimate systems. A key element of the analysis is our proposal that all living systems constitute a kinetic state of matter, as opposed to the traditional thermodynamic states that dominate the inanimate world. We will attempt to demonstrate that it is this difference in kinetic and thermodynamic factors within each of the two worlds that leads to the unique characteristics of living systems, and in particular, to the one we term "purpose". The relationship of the model to Darwinian theory and implications to the possible synthesis of living cells will be briefly discussed.

Dr. Washburn will present a seminar on Tuesday, October 28, 2008.

Talk title: "Design Principles for Cytokine-Regulating Biomaterials"

Abstract: In regenerative medicine, biological or biomimetic materials are engineered to replicate the functions of the extracellular matrix (ECM) and promote tissue repair. While significant progress has been made in synthesizing materials that mimic many functions of native ECM, little is known about how materials can be designed to regulate the activities of soluble signaling proteins that direct cells in repair processes. Cytokines mediate inflammatory responses by directing cellular activities, providing signals that can provoke inflammation or lead to its resolution. Biomaterial therapeutics that locally regulate cytokine activities could form the basis of a new class of therapies for a broad range of conditions, but this function has yet to be fully engineered into materials. I will present our research on incorporating monoclonal antibodies against pro-inflammatory cytokines in polymer matrices, providing specific recognition sites in materials to neutralize mediators of inflammation at the site of repair. Our work involves methods of polymer chemistry and engineering, biophysical characterization, and molecular and cellular biology, and I will discuss the collaborative, multi-disciplinary research involved in the development of these materials. Recent results from in vivo testing indicate that these materials are capable of inhibiting inflammatory responses but that they need to be designed to minimize cytokine diffusion times in the matrix and points to design principles for a class of biomaterials capable of interacting with native repair processes. I founded a company based on this and will discuss my early experiences in the entrepreneurial process and some of the resources at CMU and in the Pittsburgh region. This work has been further extended to the development of entrepreneurship modules in a course on Polymeric Biomaterials that I teach at CMU. At the end of this talk, I will briefly discuss my activities at the intersection of education, research, and entrepreneurship.

This year's program showcases some of the most advanced research from speakers who are national leaders in the field:

• Hear from C. Everett Koop, MD, former US Surgeon General, who will be guest speaker at the October 30 dinner.


• Interact and network with over 70 speakers who are leaders in the areas of drug delivery, regenerative medicine, tissue engineering, and biomaterials science.


• Hear from speakers with military experience and civilian experts who will describe the magnitude and complexity of the challenges presented by the acute trauma they are seeing among today's service members. Speakers will present novel ideas for adapting some of the therapies for limbs and face to potential “wound dressings for brain”.


• Be presented with a variety of new methods to facilitate discovery of polymeric biomaterials. Core scientists will provide a highly condensed “short-course” in the combinatorial-computational method that is being developed at Rutgers within the NIH biomedical technology resource program, RESBIO. The enabling role of biomaterials technologies in regenerative medicine will be addressed.

For more information, go to http://www.njbiomaterials.org/symposium.