Translational Research and Regenerative Medicine
Jennifer Cassano DVM, PhD
VM: Medicine & Epidemiology
(See also: Epidemiology, Behavior/Animal Welfare)
Dr. Cassano is an equine field service clinician in the Department of Medicine & Epidemiology with a 50% clinical appointment in the VMTH. As the director of the Regenerative Medicine Laboratory part of the Veterinary Institute for Regenerative Cures, Dr. Cassano oversees the preparation of all the stem cells used in various clinical trials underway at UC Davis. Her research seeks to better understand how modulation of the immune response can be harnessed in therapeutic treatments, combining the areas of immunology and regenerative medicine. Potential projects include evaluating mesenchymal stem cells antibacterial and antifungal properties in feline, canine, and equine species as well as evaluating mitochondria as a regenerative medicine treatment in osteoarthritis and metabolic disorders.
Dr. Cassano hopes to mentor highly motivated students interested in getting involved in clinically oriented research. Students will be involved with the following projects: Barriers to veterinary care survey of horse owners: Assist in survey design, distribution, statistical analysis and manuscript preparation. Valley Fever Epidemiology survey: lateral flow assay test, statistical analysis, manuscript preparation. If interested, regenerative medicine modality projects with more benchtop and animal opportunities.
For more information and to discuss potential projects please contact Dr. Cassano at jmcassano@ucdavis.edu.
Pouya Dini, DVM, PhD, PhD, Dipl. ECAR, Dipl. ACT
Assistant Professor in Equine Reproduction
Department of Population Health and Reproduction (PHR)
(see also: Reproductive Biology, Microbiology)
Research Interests: My research topics include parental gene expression in the placenta and the reciprocal paternal and maternal gene interaction in the equine's placental development and its pathologies, effects of assisted reproductive techniques on the epigenetic of the equine placenta, and host-pathogen interaction during equine placentitis. We use high-throughput sequencing along with classical molecular and cellular biology techniques to explore these topics.
Possible learning outcomes:
1- Culture cells and organoid from reproductive tract (mainly equine)
2- Extract nucleotides and PCR
3- Get familiar with next-generation Sequencing methods
4- Get familiar with in vitro embryo production in equine and bovine
Dr. Dini can be reached via email at pdini@ucdavis.edu.
Cecilia Giulivi, PhD
VM: Molecular Biosciences
(see also: Biochemistry & Cellular Biology, Metabolism)
My main research interest is to understand the mechanisms of mitochondrial dysfunction that contribute to the morbidity or start of neurodegeneration or neurodevelopmental deficits. As an extension of this work, and as aging is one of the main contributors to neurodegeneration, and life expectancy of pets is increasing worldwide, we realized that data on vitamins and antioxidant status of cats as they age are limited. This gap of knowledge undermines the resources needed by pet owners and clinicians to make informed decisions on (for instance) dietary supplements.
Projects for summer research students include: Healthy aging in cats; disparity between chronological and biological age in cats. Combined omics, bioinformatics, identification of key biologiacl pathways influencing the disparity between chronological and biological age.
Dr. Giulivi can be reached via email.
Kristin Grimsrud, DVM, PhD
Assistant Clinical Professor, Dept of Pathology, School of Medicine
Associate Director of Vivaria and Veterinary Care, Mouse Biology Program (MBP)
(See also: Anesthesia/Pain Managment, Pharmacology/Toxicology)
Not taking students in 2025
Dr. Grimsrud is a laboratory animal veterinarian and her research focuses on translational medicine and animal model optimization and development. Her current major research efforts are in collaboration with the Knockout Mouse Project, Metabolic Mouse Phenotyping Center and Mutant Mouse Resource and Research Center. Additionally, she is involved in a variety of microbiota bariatric surgery research projects that utilize mouse models. Lastly, Dr. Grimsrud has a strong interest in translational clinical pharmacology where she investigates variation in pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics in special populations (e.g. burn patients, pediatrics) and assess the influences of polymorphisms on drug efficacy.
Research projects that students could be involved with relate to studies to optimize anesthesia and analgesia protocols, optimizing superovulation techniques in rodents and a variety of other projects related to the genetically engineered rodent models and microbiota/gnotobiotic research.
Contact Information:
Email: kngrimsrud@ucdavis.edu
Office Phone: 530-757-3220
Amir Kol, DVM, PhD
VM: Pathology, Microbiology & Immunology
(See also: Biochemistry/Cellular Biology)
I am an Associate Professor in the Department of Pathology, Microbiology and Immunology and the Chief of Service of Clinical Pathology at the VMTH. My research focus is in comparative stem cell biology and its application to regenerative medicine and disease modeling. Our group is working in 3 main thematic areas: (1) Mesenchymal stromal cell (MSC) treatment for lymphoid tissue regeneration and immune recovery in chronic viral infections, (2) Intestinal stem cell-derived organoids for disease modeling and (3) canine induced pluripotent stem cell. We do a lot of cell culture, flow cytometry, immunohistochemistry, confocal microscopy, qRT-PCR, sequencing and informatics. Please contact Dr. Kol if you are interested in a STAR project.
Contact information: akol@ucdavis.edu
Brian Leonard
Department of Surgical & Radiological Sciences
(see also: Immunology/Infectious Disease, Opthalmology/Ocular Biology)
My research focuses on ocular surface health and immunity. I am particularly interested in the factors that promote tear film stability and the pathologies that lead to destabilization and ocular surface disease. Additionally, I am interested in the innate immune system of the ocular surface and the potential for modulating host responses to limit microbial keratitis.
Active projects in the lab include ocular surface disease, dry eye disease, ocular surface immunity, corneal immunology and corneal microbiology.
I can be reached at bcleonard@ucdavis.edu for questions.
Mike Mienaltowski, DVM, Ph.D.
Tendon repair, stem/progenitor cell biology
College of Agriculture and Environmental Sciences (See also: Orthopaedics/Biomechanical Engineering, Genetics/Genomics and Genetics/Genomics)
My primary research interests include:
(1) the development, maturation, and repair of musculoskeletal connective tissues like tendon and ligament
(2) cellular mechanisms behind broiler muscle pathology
(3) the roles of the microbiome in proper gut transition in foals from birth to weaning.
In my musculoskeletal research projects, I am particularly interested in how differences in niche affect cells within the environment in growth and repair. Moreover, I am interested in the physiology of usage and elite performance as well as pathophysiology from over-usage, acute and chronic injury for all musculoskeletal tissues on all species as they might be related to use, environment, or genetics, and as they might be related to the manipulation of niche and collagen regulation genes. Furthermore, because the proper development of the musculoskeletal system depends greatly upon proper foal growth and foal growth subsequently depends upon appropriate nutrition, I am interested in understanding how gut microbes facilitate healthy gut transitions in the foal.More information can be found at: http://animalscience.ucdavis.edu/faculty/mienaltowski/index.html
Contact information for Dr. Mienaltowski: e-mail: mjmienaltowski@ucdavis.edu
Michael Rogawski, MD, Ph.D.
Department of Neurology (see also: Neurology/Neurobiology, Pharmacology/Toxicology)
Dr. Rogawski is a neurologist and pharmacologist whose research focuses on new treatment approaches for seizures, epilepsy, headache and other neurological conditions. Many of the treatment approaches involve targeting of ion channels, including GABA-A receptors, glutamate receptors, voltage-gated sodium channels and voltage-gated potassium channel. Students in the STAR program will work with a senior researcher in Dr. Rogawski’s laboratory on an independent project related to one of the diverse areas of interest to the group. Research in the laboratory utilizes animal models and also cellular electrophysiology (brain slice and tissue culture). Students have an opportunity to gain experience with animal surgery, EEG recording, and testing of novel treatments in various neurobehavioral and seizure paradigms. The laboratory also conducts pharmacokinetic studies and operates a UPLC-quadrapole mass spectrometer for the measurement of drug levels. Some of the therapeutic strategies under investigation include: AMPA receptor antagonists, neuroactive steroids, dietary therapies, cannabinoids, and treatments for genetic epilepsies. Dr. Rogawski’s laboratory is a component of the UC Davis CounterACT Center of Excellence, which investigates treatments for nerve agent seizures. STAR program students may choose a project related to the activities of the CounterACT Center.
STAR students will participate in projects related to testing anti-seizure medications in mice or rats; pharmacokinetic studies; drug bioanalysis; HPLC and quadrupole mass spectrometer Students successfully completing a summer project may have an opportunity to present their research at a national meeting.
Please visit Dr. Rogawski's website at: http://mr.ucdavis.edu/
Aijun Wang, PhD
UC Davis Medical Center, Department of Surgery (see also: Biochemistry/Cellular Biology, Orthopedics, Surgery)
Dr. Aijun Wang is a Chancellor's Fellow Professor of Surgery and of Biomedical Engineering at the University of California, Davis (UC Davis). He is the Vice Chair for Translational Research, Innovation and Entrepreneurship for the Department of Surgery, Co-founder and Co-Director of the Center for Surgical Bioengineering (CSB), formerly known as Surgical Bioengineering Laboratory, and Dean's Fellow in Entrepreneurship at the UC Davis School of Medicine. He is also a Principal Investigator at the Institute for Pediatric Regenerative Medicine (IPRM) / Shriners Children's Pediatric Research Center, Northern California. Dr. Wang’s research focuses on developing tools, technologies and products that combine molecular, cellular, tissue and biomaterial engineering to promote regeneration and restore function. Specifically, the Wang Group is focused on integrating single cell spatial multi-omics (transcriptomics, proteomics, and metabolomics) to study disease mechanisms and developmental process, and engineering stem cell/gene therapy, extracellular vesicles/nanomedicine, and extracellular matrix/biomaterial scaffolds to treat various surgical conditions and diseases. Dr. Wang and his team at CSB specialize in bringing therapeutics from bench to bedside, through innovative discovery, translational and IND-enabling studies, GMP manufacturing, and ultimately clinical trials in both human and companion animal patients.
Please visit Dr. Wang’s website at https://wanglab.engineering.ucdavis.edu or the website for the Center for Surgical Bioengineering at https://health.ucdavis.edu/surgery/research/index.html
Contact Dr. Wang: aawang@ucdavis.edu.
Wei Yao, MD
Professor
Associate Director, Center for Musculoskeletal Health
Internal Medicine, University of California at Davis Medical Center
Dr. Yao is a distinguish bone biologist focus on translational research using animal models on bone diseases to evaluate bone active agents on bone metabolisms. One of Dr. Yao’s research focuses for the past nine years is to investigate bone regenerative approaches using mesenchymal stromal cells (MSCs), including bone targeted delivery and activation of MSCs, use of genetic modified MSCs or novel bone specific, osteogenic peptides for bone regenerative medicine. Dr. Yao’s research group has performed many studies to test this approach in animal models of primary osteoporosis, aging, glucocorticoid-induced bone fragility, fracture healing and in inflammatory arthritis. Dr. Yao has been using bone seeking agent to delivery MSCs to bone in an IND-enabling study. Dr. Yao has collaborated with many pharmaceutical companies, including Eli Lilly, Pfizer, P&G, Glaxo and Smith Kline and Amgen et al, in their bone - active drug developments over the past 20 years.
Please visit Dr. Yao's website for more information -
http://www.ucdmc.ucdavis.edu/musculoskeletalhealth/bios/yao.html
Glenn Yiu, MD, PhD
Med: Ophthalmology & Vision Science
(See also: Ophthalmology/Ocular Biology, Non-Human Primate Medicine)
Dr. Yiu is a clinician-scientist and vitreoretinal surgeon at the UC Davis Medical Center who uses advanced ocular imaging technologies to study diseases of the eye. Examples include optical coherence tomography (OCT), which allows visualization of retinal pathology in vivo with near-histological details. OCT imaging allows physicians to identify age-related or pathologic changes in the structure of the retina or vasculature, particularly in diseases such as age-related macular degeneration in humans, the leading cause of blindness in the elderly.
Through collaborations with veterinary ophthalmologist Dr. Sara Thomasy, they are now using OCT technology to study retinal anatomy in rhesus macaques at the California National Primate Research Center.
STAR students will participate in a project related to retinal imaging in rhesus macaque models of age-related macular degeneration. This study will involve learning to custom ocular imaging analysis, histology, and immunohistochemistry, to understand the pathophysiology of the leading cause of blindness in the elderly using this nonhuman primate model.
More details about Dr. Yiu are available at: https://www.ucdmc.ucdavis.edu/eyecenter/yiulab/index.html
Contact Dr. Yiu: gyiu@ucdavis.edu