Noah Johnson

Trainee

Noah Johnson

Noah Johnson

Faculty Mentor: Yadong Wang

Research:  

Mr. Johnson used a novel heparin-polycation delivery system to provide controlled delivery of growth factors for a number of applications. The delivery vehicle is a coacervate, an emulsion-like assortment of droplets that self-assemble, incorporate heparin-binding growth factors, protect them from degradation, and slowly release them over time. The coacervate is injectable and stays localized to the site of injection.  He is currently investigating the efficacy of controlled growth factor delivery in cardiac repair (for heart failure patients), wound healing (for skin injuries), and bone/cartilage regeneration (for cranial/long bone defects and arthritis). He uses the same coacervate delivery system in all cases but the growth factors are selected for a specific desired outcome. Mr. Johnson is also investigating growth factor therapy to improve tissue engineering approaches by coating biodegradable vascular scaffolds and nerve guide conduits with our delivery system. The controllable, sustained release that our delivery system provides could be widely beneficial to any application of growth factor therapy. 

Publications:    

  • Johnson NR, Wang, Y. "Controlled delivery of sonic hedgehog morphogen and its potential for cardiac repair.'  PLoS One : 8(5). 2013. 
  • Johnson NR, Wang, Y. "Controlled delivery of heparin-binding EGF-like growth factor yields fast and comprehensive wound healing."  J Control Release : 166(2). 2013
  • Li H*, Johnson NR*, Usas A, Wang Y, Huard J. "A Sustained Release BMP2 Coacervate for Promoting Osteogenesis of Muscle-Derived Stem Cells."  Stem Cells Trans Med. 2013. 

Conferences:    

  • McGowan Institute for Regenerative Medicine Scientific Retreat, Nemacolin, PA. United States of America. 3/7/2013
    • Johnson N and Wang Y, "Accelerated Skin Wound Healing with Sustained Delivery of EGF."
    • Lee KW, Johnson N, Gao J, Wang Y, "Enhanced Progenitor Cell Recruitment via Sustained Delivery of SDF-1α."
    • Awada H, Johnson N, Wang Y. "Co-delivery of VEGF and HGF for Angiogenic Applications."  
     
  • Society for Biomaterials (SFB) Annual Meeting, Boston, MA. United States of America. 4/10/2013.
  • Uniformed Services University (USU) Research Days 2013, Bethesda, MD. United States of America. 5/14/2013. 
  • Louis J. Fox Center Vision Restoration Conference, Pittsburgh, AP. United States of America. 6/10/2013.
    • Johnson N, Chu H, Wang, Y. "Controlled Delivery System for Growth Factor Therapy."  
     
  • Biomedical Engineering Society (BMES) Annual Meeting, Seattle, WA. United States of America. 9/25/2013
    • Lee KW, Johnson N, Gao J, Wang Y. "Progenitor Cell Recruitment via SDF-1α; Coacervate-absorbed in Vascular Grafts."
    • Awada H, Johnson N, Wang Y. "Co-delivery of VEGF and HGF for Angiogenic Applications."
    • Johnson N and Wang Y. "Controlled Delivery of Sonic Hedgehog for Cardiac Regeneration."

 


Noah's research involves a controlled delivery system for growth factors to repair and regenerate tissues. He is currently investigating the potential of growth factor therapy for post-heart attack cardiac repair, for bone and cartilage regeneration, and for dermal wound healing.