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| Dorothy M Supp, B.S., PhD., Postdoctoral Fellowship, |
Research Associate Professor (Adjunct); Associate Investigator, Shriners Hospitals for Children - Cincinnati
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Shriners Hospitals for Children - Cincinnati
3229 Burnet Avenue
Cincinnati, Ohio, 45229-3095
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Areas of Specialization - The purpose of my research is to enhance the performance of cultured skin substitutes for the healing of burns and other skin wounds. Cultured skin substitutes have been used at the Shriners Burns Hospital and the University of Cincinnati as an adjunctive treatment for large burn wounds. Although significant improvements over recent years have led to better clinical outcomes, cultured skin substitutes are still limited by deficiencies in anatomy and physiology compared to native skin autograft. Using the tools of molecular biology, my laboratory can genetically modify the cells used to prepare cultured skin to modulate expression of genes involved in wound healing. Genetic modification can theoretically be used to improve the composition or performance of skin substitutes, making them more similar to native skin autograft and increasing their clinical efficacy. My lab is pursuing several lines of investigation involving cultured skin substitutes. These include: —Comparing the gene expression profiles of cultured skin and native human skin, using cDNA microarrays. This will enable us to better characterize the cultured skin substitutes and focus on specific genes and/or pathways for regulation through genetic modification. —Identifying safe and efficient methods for genetic modification of skin cells. —Preparing genetically modified skin substitutes and evaluating their performance in a preclinical animal model. —Examining expression of antimicrobial peptides, such as defensins, in cultured skin grafts, to determine the feasibility of increasing resistance to microbial contamination. —Grafting of allogeneic skin substitutes for treatment of chronic leg ulcers. —Studying the effects of mutations in the melanocortin 1 receptor, a candidate melanoma-susceptibility gene, in melanocytes in organotypic culture, to determine if they show increased sensitivity to UV-induced DNA damage.
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