Elie Zakhem, Ph.D., a postdoctoral research fellow at the Wake Forest Institute for Regenerative Medicine, has received the Early Career Investigators award from the American Gastroenterological Association (AGA) Institute Council.
Zakhem earned his Ph.D. in Molecular Medicine and Translational Sciences (MMTS) from Wake Forest School of Medicine and holds a master’s in bioengineering and biomedical engineering from Wayne State University. He works in the lab under Khalil Bitar, Ph.D., director of WFIRM’s gastrointestinal program, a translational program that utilizes regenerative medicine approaches to potentially treat patients with deficiencies in the physiological functions of the GI tract. Zakhem’s project involves tissue engineering gut segments as replacements to treat neurodegenerative diseases of the gut. He has published multiple papers (eight as first author, and nine as co-author) during his graduate studies with research interests focusing on the basic science and translational aspects of gut tissue engineering. He also co-authored a paper with Bitar as senior author, published in Nature Reviews in 2016, that provided a review of advances in the field of gastrointestinal tissue engineering and regenerative medicine.
The AGA Institute Council is made up of elected representatives from the 13 special interest groups, or sections, within the AGA membership and is responsible for developing educational resources and holding events in targeted areas of practice throughout the year.
Dylan KnutsonDylan Knutson, a graduate student working in the Wake Forest Institute for Regenerative Medicine laboratory of Khalil Bitar, Ph.D., was the recipient of the Alvarez Award for best abstract given every year by the International Gastrointestinal Electrophysiology Society (iGES) at its annual meeting. Knutson earned his master’s in biomedical engineering from Wake Forest School of Medicine in May 2017.
The project Knutson works on involves engineering GI tissues that represent clinically relevant patient populations using cell combinations of smooth muscle, neurons and a pacemaker cell called Interstitial Cells of Cajal (ICC); and then assesses the way the force generated by these muscle tissues changes under each combination.
The iGES aims to foster research into the understanding of electrophysiology in the smooth muscle and ICC cells in the stomach, small intestine and colon. The society also aims to improve knowledge about the modulation of gastrointestinal activity by pacing or stimulating and the analysis of non-invasive recordings of the body surface electrical (EGG) and magnetic (MGG) fields.
Bitar is the director of the Institute’s gastrointestinal program, a translational program that utilizes regenerative medicine approaches to potentially treat patients with deficiencies in the physiological functions of the GI tract.
Zakhem earned his Ph.D. in Molecular Medicine and Translational Sciences (MMTS) from Wake Forest School of Medicine and holds a master’s in bioengineering and biomedical engineering from Wayne State University. He works in the lab under Khalil Bitar, Ph.D., director of WFIRM’s gastrointestinal program, a translational program that utilizes regenerative medicine approaches to potentially treat patients with deficiencies in the physiological functions of the GI tract. Zakhem’s project involves tissue engineering gut segments as replacements to treat neurodegenerative diseases of the gut. He has published multiple papers (eight as first author, and nine as co-author) during his graduate studies with research interests focusing on the basic science and translational aspects of gut tissue engineering. He also co-authored a paper with Bitar as senior author, published in Nature Reviews in 2016, that provided a review of advances in the field of gastrointestinal tissue engineering and regenerative medicine.
The AGA Institute Council is made up of elected representatives from the 13 special interest groups, or sections, within the AGA membership and is responsible for developing educational resources and holding events in targeted areas of practice throughout the year.
Dylan KnutsonDylan Knutson, a graduate student working in the Wake Forest Institute for Regenerative Medicine laboratory of Khalil Bitar, Ph.D., was the recipient of the Alvarez Award for best abstract given every year by the International Gastrointestinal Electrophysiology Society (iGES) at its annual meeting. Knutson earned his master’s in biomedical engineering from Wake Forest School of Medicine in May 2017.
The project Knutson works on involves engineering GI tissues that represent clinically relevant patient populations using cell combinations of smooth muscle, neurons and a pacemaker cell called Interstitial Cells of Cajal (ICC); and then assesses the way the force generated by these muscle tissues changes under each combination.
The iGES aims to foster research into the understanding of electrophysiology in the smooth muscle and ICC cells in the stomach, small intestine and colon. The society also aims to improve knowledge about the modulation of gastrointestinal activity by pacing or stimulating and the analysis of non-invasive recordings of the body surface electrical (EGG) and magnetic (MGG) fields.
Bitar is the director of the Institute’s gastrointestinal program, a translational program that utilizes regenerative medicine approaches to potentially treat patients with deficiencies in the physiological functions of the GI tract.