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William R. Wagner

Professor, Department of Surgery
Professor, Bioengineering
Professor, Chemical and Petroleum Engineering

Email:
Phone: (412) 235-5138
Fax: (412) 235-5110
Office: 226 Bridgeside Point
100 Technology Dr
Pittsburgh, PA 15219

Education

Ph.D. (Chemical Engineering), University of Texas at Austin, 1991

Professional Interests

Dr. William R. Wagner is the Deputy Director of the McGowan Institute for Regenerative Medicine as well as a Professor of Surgery, Bioengineering and Chemical Engineering at the University of Pittsburgh. He also serves as the Director of Thrombosis Research for the Artificial Heart and Lung Program. He holds a B.S. (Johns Hopkins Univ.) and Ph.D. (Univ. of Texas) in Chemical Engineering. Dr. Wagner serves as the Coordinator for the Cellular and Organ Engineering track for Bioengineering graduate students, and currently teaches in the areas of biomaterials and tissue engineering.

Professor Wagner is a fellow of the American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering and is a member of numerous professional and scientific societies, including the Society for Biomaterials, American Chemical Society, American Society for Artificial Internal Organs, Biomedical Engineering Society and Tissue Engineering and Regenerative Medicine International Society. He is the founding editor of the biomaterials journal Acta Biomaterialia, which began publication in January 2005, and currently serves on the editorial boards of the Journal of Biomedical Materials Research, Journal of Tissue Engineering and Regenerative Medicine and Biotechnology & Bioengineering. Dr. Wagner has served as Chairman for the Gordon Research Conference on Biomaterials: Biocompatibility & Tissue Engineering as well as the First World Congress of the Tissue Engineering and Regenerative Medicine International Society. In 2006 Dr. Wagner was selected to the "Scientific American 50", the magazine's annual list recognizing leaders in science and technology from the research, business and policy fields. He has served on numerous NIH and NSF study sections and has been a member of external review committees for national and international organizations focused on bioengineering and regenerative medicine.

Dr. Wagner's research interests involve the application of engineering and materials science principles to develop technologies that aid in the treatment and diagnosis of cardiovascular disease. His research group's cardiovascular engineering efforts include projects that address cardiovascular device biocompatibility and design, tissue engineering, and targeted vascular imaging. Researchers in Dr. Wagner's group include graduate students in Bioengineering and Chemical Engineering as well as post-doctoral fellows with backgrounds in surgery, engineering, or polymer chemistry. Projects span from in vitro to clinical studies.

For additional information on Professor Wagner's research programs, please visit the page of his laboratory at the McGowan Institute for Regenerative Medicine at http://www.mirc.pitt.edu/people/bios/Wagner1.html

Selected Publications

  • Snyder TA, Tsukui H, Kihara S, Akimoto T, Litwak KN, Kameneva MV, Yamazaki K, Wagner WR: Preclinical biocompatibility assessment of the EVAHEART ventricular assist device: coating comparison and platelet activation. J Biomed Mater Res A 81:85-92 (2007).
  • Fujimoto KL, Guan J, Oshima H, Sakai T, Wagner WR: In vivo evaluation of a porous, elastic, biodegradable patch for reconstructive cardiac procedures. Ann Thorac Surg 83:648-654 (2007).
  • Snyder TA, Litwak KN, Tsukui H, Akimoto T, Kihara S, Yamazaki K, Wagner WR: Leukocyte-platelet aggregates and monocyte tissue factor expression in bovines implanted with ventricular assist devices. Artif Organs 31:126-131(2007).
  • Deglau TE, Johnson JD, Villanueva FS, Wagner WR: Targeting microspheres and cells to PEG-modified biological surfaces. J Biomed Mater Res A 81:578–585 (2007).
  • Villanueva FS, Lu E, Bowry S, Kilic S, Tom E, Wang J, Gretton J, Pacella JJ, Wagner WR: Myocardial ischemic memory imaging using molecular echocardiography. Circulation 115:345-352 (2007).
  • Stankus JJ, Soletti L, Fujimoto K, Hong Y, Vorp DA, Wagner WR: Fabrication of cell microintegrated blood vessel constructs through electrohydrodynamic atomization. Biomaterials 28:2738–2746 (2007).
  • Fujimoto KL, Tobita K, Merryman WD, Guan, J, Momoi N, Stolz DB, Sacks MS, Keller BB, Wagner WR: An elastic, biodegradable cardiac patch induces contractile smooth muscle and improves cardiac remodeling and function in sub-acute myocardial infarction. J Am Coll Cardiol 49:2292-2300 (2007).
  • Guan J, Stankus JJ, Wagner WR: Biodegradable elastomeric scaffolds with basic fibroblast growth factor release. J Control Release 120:70-78 (2007).
  • Dasse KA, Gellman BN, Kameneva MV, Woolley J, Johnson C, Gempp T, Marks JD, Kent S, Koert A, Richardson JS, Franklin S, Snyder TA, Wearden P, Wagner WR, Gilbert RJ, Borovetz HS: Assessment of hydraulic performance and biocompatibility of a MagLev centrifugal pump system designed for pediatric cardiac or cardiopulmonary support. ASAIO J 53:771-777 (2007).
  • Nieponice A, Soletti L, MS, Guan J, PhD, Deasy BM, Huard J, Wagner WR, Vorp DA: Development of a tissue engineered vascular graft combining a biodegradable scaffold, muscle-derived stem cells and a rotational vacuum seeding technique. Biomaterials 29:825-833 (2008).
  • Johnson CA Jr., Snyder TA, Woolley JR, Wagner WR: Flow cytometric assays for quantifying activated ovine platelets. Artif Organs 32:136–145 (2008).
  • Stankus JJ, Freytes DO, Badylak SF, Wagner WR: Hybrid nanofibrous scaffolds from electrospinning of a synthetic biodegradable elastomer and urinary bladder matrix. J Biomater Sci Polym Ed 19:635–652 (2008).
  • Hong Y, Fujimoto K, Hashizume R, Guan J, Stankus JJ, Tobita K, Wagner WR: Generating elastic, biodegradable polyurethane/poly(lactide-co-glycolide) fibrous sheets with controlled antibiotic release via two-stream electrospinning. Biomacromolecules 9:1200-1207 (2008).
  • Guan J, Hong Y, Ma Z, Wagner WR: Protein-reactive, thermoresponsive copolymers with high flexibility and biodegradability. Biomacromolecules 9:1283-1292 (2008).
  • Stella JA, Liao J, Hong Y, Merryman WD, Wagner WR, Sacks MS: Tissue-to-cellular level deformation coupling in cell microintegrated elastomeric scaffolds. Biomaterials 29:3228-3236 (2008).
  • El-Kurdi MS, Hong Y, Stankus JJ, Soletti L, Wagner WR, Vorp DA: Transient elastic support for vein grafts using a constricting microfibrillar polymer wrap. Biomaterials 29:3213-3220 (2008).
  • Guan J, Fujimoto KL, Wagner WR: Elastase-sensitive elastomeric scaffolds with variable anisotropy for soft tissue engineering. Pharm Res 25:2400-2412 (2008).
  • Burgess KA, Hu HH, Wagner WR, Federspiel WJ: Towards microfabricated biohybrid artificial lung modules for chronic respiratory support. Biomed Microdev 11:117-27 (2009).
  • Hong Y, Ye SH, Nieponice A, Soletti L, Vorp DA, Wagner WR: A small diameter, fibrous vascular conduit generated from a poly(ester urethane)urea and phospholipid polymer blend. Biomaterials 30:2457–67 (2009).
  • Toma C, Wagner WR, Bowry S, Schwartz A, Villanueva F: Fate of culture-expanded mesenchymal stem cells in the microvasculature: In vivo observations of cell kinetics. Circ Res 104:398-402 (2009).
  • Ye SH, Johnson CA Jr., Woolley JR, Snyder TA, Gamble LJ, Wagner WR: Covalent surface modification of a titanium alloy with a phosphorylcholine-containing copolymer for reduced thrombogenicity in cardiovascular devices. J Biomed Mater Res A (in press, published online).
  • Fujimoto KL, Miki T, Liu LJ, Hashizume R, Strom SC, Wagner WR, Keller BB, Tobita K: Naïve rat amnion-derived cell transplantation improved left ventricular function and reduced myocardial scar of post-infarcted heart. Cell Transplant (in press, published online).
  • Wang F, Li Z, Lannutti JL, Wagner WR, Guan J: Synthesis, characterization and surface modification of low moduli poly(ether carbonate urethane)ureas for soft tissue engineering. Acta Biomaterialia (in press).
  • Stella JA, Wagner WR, Sacks MS: Scale dependent fiber kinematics of elastomeric electrospun scaffolds for soft tissue engineering. J Biomed Mater Res A (in press).

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