BME/CBE 520, Stem Cell Bioengineering

Course Syllabus
Spring, 2014
BME 520: Stem Cell Bioengineering
Time: Tuesday/Thursday, 2:30-3:45
Location: 2106 Mechanical Engineering Building
Instructor: Professor Randolph Ashton
4168 Wisconsin Institutes for Discovery (WID)
Tel: 608/316-4312
E-mail: [email protected]
Office Hours:
Primary Contact:
Secondary Contact:
Carlos Marti-Figueroa, Teaching Assistant
[email protected]
WID Lobby, Monday/Wednesday 4-5pm.
Prof. Ashton
By appointment only, set-up via email
Course Description:
The interface between bioengineering and stem cell biology is among the most intriguing and
active areas of inquiry in modern biotechnology. The aim of this course is to illuminate and
explore this interdisciplinary research area, with an emphasis on fundamental stem cell
biology, modeling of stem cell signaling, control over the stem cell microenvironment, and
stem cell-based tissue development and regeneration. The course will begin by introducing
important fundamental aspects of stem cell biology, followed by modules (shown below)
covering bioengineering focus areas as they relate to stem cell understanding and
manipulation. Each class period will start with a student lead discussion of recent Stem Cell
Bioengineering news (i.e. see below for “Stem Cell Bioengineering in the News”), and
conclude with a lecture on a fundamental topic. The course is aimed primarily towards firstyear graduate students with backgrounds and interests in stem cell biology and
bioengineering, and students will be expected to take an active role in both lectures and
discussion portions of the course.
Course Modules:
Module 1: Fundamentals of Stem Cell Biology
Module 2: Modeling of Stem Cell Signal Transduction
Module 3: Tissue Development and Regeneration
Module 4: Engineering the Stem Cell
Module 5: Stem Cell Policy and Ethics
Textbook: Gilbert, Scott F. Developmental Biology, Ed. 9 or 10. Sunderland: Sinauer
Associates, Inc., 2013.
Also, several copies are on reserve at multiple UW Madison libraries, i.e. Steenbock Reserve
Collection (QL955 G48 2010) and Zoological Museum Research Library (QL955 G48 2010).
Plus, we will use online resources including journal review articles and book chapters.
Grading: 30% final report, 50% quizzes on modules 1-4, 20% participation
** Final reports for undergraduate students will consist of a 5-page term paper (See BME520
Final Paper Specifics). For graduate students, the final paper will consist of a 6-page R21style proposal with at least 50 references and a specific aims page: see
http://grants.nih.gov/grants/funding/r21.htm for details.
** “Stem Cells Bioengineering in the News”: The field of stem cell bioengineering is
advancing at an incredibly fast pace, and thus there is always news of new findings and
discoveries that advance the field as a whole. Each student will be responsible for presenting a
slide presentation (i.e., no more than 5-7 slides) on recent stem cell bioengineering news that
dates no more than two weeks prior to his or her presentation. The presentation should
concisely present the dated title page of the research or news article, brief and pertinent
background, and a synopsis of the findings and how it relates to stem cell bioengineering. The
journal impact must be ≥7, and the presentation should take no more than 7 minutes. This will
account for 10% of your participation grade.
Week
Week 1
Module 1
Week 2
Module 1
Week 3
Module 1
Week 4
Module 1
Week 5
Module 2
Week 6
Module 2
Date
1/20
1/27
2/3
2/10
2/12
2/17
2/24
Week 7
Module 2
3/3
Week 8
Module 2
3/10
Week 9
Module 3
Week 10
Module 3
3/5
3/12
3/17
3/24
Topic
Topic: What are Stem Cells?
Focus: Definitions and Introduction to Stem Cell Biology
Topic: Intracellular Molecular Mechanisms
Focus: Self-renewal, differentiation, and plasticity
Topic: The Pluripotent and Adult Stem Cell Niche
Focus: Key external signals that influence stem cells
Topic: Signal Transduction Mechanisms in Stem Cells
Focus: Growth Factors, Cell-cell contact, cell-ECM signaling
Module 1 Quiz & Paper topic consultation #1 (send email to
Prof. Ashton)
Topic: Introduction to Modeling Cell Behavior
Focus: Modeling Receptor-Ligand Kinetics
Topic: Statistical Data Mining in Stem Cell Biology (Part I)
Focus: Principal Component Analysis
Topic: Statistical Data Mining in Stem Cell Biology (Part II)
Focus: Partial Least Squares Regression
Paper topic consultation #2 (send email to Prof. Ashton)
Topic: Modeling Stem Cell Culture
Focus: Phenomenological Modeling
Module 2 Quiz
Topic: Tissue Development/Regeneration: Ectoderm
Focus: CNS, Eye, Neural Crest, and Axonal Guidance
Topic: Tissue Development/Regeneration: Mesoderm
Focus: Somites, Muscle, Bone, Heart, Vasculature
3/26
3/31
Week 11
Module 3
Week 12
Module 4
Week 13
Module 4
Week 14
Module 4
Week 15
Module 5
Final
4/07
4/9
4/14
4/21
4/28
5/5
5/7
5/12
Paper Abstract Due (send email to Prof. Ashton)
Spring Break- no class
Topic: Tissue Development/Regeneration: Endoderm
Focus: Gut, Liver, Lungs
Module 3 Quiz
Topic: Approaches for Engineering Stem Cell Gene Expression
Focus: Genetic Engineering: Retroviruses and Zinc Fingers
Topic: Approaches for Engineering Stem Cell Gene Expression
Focus: Genetic Engineering: TALENs and Cas9
Topic: Stem Cell Bioengineering Challenge
Focus: From Knowledge to Practice
Module 4 Quiz
Topic: Stem Cell Policy and Ethics
Guest Lecture: Prof. Krishanu Saha
Final Paper Due (email pdf to Prof. Ashton by 5pm)