Sina Rabbany

Dean, School of Engineering and Applied Science, Professor of Engineering Hofstra University

  • Hempstead NY

Dean, School of Engineering and Applied Science, The Jean Nerken Distinguished Professor in Engineering and Professor of Engineering

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Hofstra University

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Media

Biography

Dr. Rabbany is currently doing research in the field of cellular and tissue engineering as applied to the vascular system. One of the major obstacles in engineering vascularized tissue is induction of endothelial vessel networks. To this end, his research applies engineering principles to the advancements being made in the differentiation of embryonic stem (ES) cells toward engineering vascularized tissue. The focus of the research is to expand pure populations of stem cells in vitro, and influence their cell fate decisions to direct differentiation into vascular cells including functional transplantable endothelial (EC) and smooth muscle (SM) cells. Understanding the mechanistic basis of ES cell differentiation into functional ECs is critical to various aspects of tissue engineering and regenerative medicine. In addition, tissue explants generated by these vascular cells can be introduced in vivo to restore function by augmenting vessel growth, in the ischemic myocardium or limbs of patients after heart attacks or diabetic vascular diseases. The projects range from elucidating the role of physical forces such as cyclic stretch, simulated microgravity, and shear stress on vascular cells and engineering of vascularized constructs. In the past, he has done research in the areas of cardiovascular Mechanics and Biosensors, and cell & receptor biomechanics.

Industry Expertise

Research
Education/Learning

Areas of Expertise

Cellular and Tissue Engineering
Biomedical Engineering
Bioengineering
Biomechanics
Stem Cell Biology

Accomplishments

Athanasios Papoulis Award

Awarded by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers.

Education

University of Pennsylvania

Ph.D.

1991

University of Pennsylvania

MSE

1986

University of Pennsylvania

BSE

1985

Affiliations

  • American Institute for Medical & Biological Engineering : Fellow
  • Scientific Advisory Board, AcelleRx Therapeutics, Inc. : Member.

Media Appearances

Dr. Sina Rabbany, Hofstra University - Restoring Damaged Organs

WAMC  online

2014-03-12

"Could organ donation and transplants become a relic of the past?

In Today’s Academic Minute, Dr. Sina Rabbany, professor and director of bioengineering at Hofstra University, discusses new insights into how blood vessels acquire characteristics, and how they might be used to transform how we repair damaged organs."

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Blood vessel cells can repair, regenerate organs

ScienceDaily  online

2013-10-08

"Indeed, in the Stem Cell Journal study, the team generated endothelial cells from mouse embryonic stem cells that were functional, transplantable and responsive to microenvironmental signals.

These embryonic-derived endothelial cells "are versatile, so they can be transplanted into different tissues, become educated by the tissue, and acquire the characteristics of the native endothelial cells," says the study's senior author, Dr. Sina Rabbany..."

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Lung regeneration closer to reality with new discovery by Weill Cornell Medical College researchers

EurekAlert!  online

2011-10-28

"Dr. Rafii's team also seeks to reveal the initiation signals resulting in the activation of lung blood vessels. "Changes in local blood flow and biomechanical forces in the remaining lung after removal of the left lung could certainly be one of the initiation cues that induce endothelial activation," says Dr. Sina Rabbany, who is a co-senior author of this study and a professor of bioengineering at Hofstra University and adjunct associate professor of genetic medicine and bioengineering in medicine at Weill Cornell."

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Articles

Targeting of the Pulmonary Capillary Vascular Niche Promotes Lung Alveolar Repair and Ameliorates Fibrosis

Nature Medicine

2016

Although the lung can undergo self-repair after injury, fibrosis in chronically injured or diseased lungs can occur at the expense of regeneration. Here we study how a hematopoietic-vascular niche regulates alveolar repair and lung fibrosis. Using intratracheal injection of bleomycin or hydrochloric acid in mice, we show that repetitive lung injury ...

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PEG-Immobilized Keratin for Protein Drug Sequestration and pH-Mediated Delivery

Journal of Drug Delivery

2015

Protein drugs like growth factors are promising therapeutics for damaged-tissue repair. Their local delivery often requires biomaterial carriers for achieving the therapeutic dose range while extending efficacy. In this study, polyethylene glycol (PEG) and keratin were crosslinked and used as sponge-like scaffolds (KTN-PEG) to absorb test ...

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A Parallel-Plate Flow Chamber for Mechanical Characterization of Endothelial Cells Exposed to Laminar Shear Stress.

Cellular and Molecular Bioengineering

2015

Shear stresses induced by laminar fluid flow are essential to properly recapitulate the physiological microenvironment experienced by endothelial cells (ECs). ECs respond to these stresses via mechanotransduction by modulating their phenotype and biomechanical characteristics, which can be characterized by atomic force microscopy (AFM). Parallel...

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