Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering at Harvard

Instead of putting a "band aid" on skin disease, what if we could treat the root cause: the declining function of the skin’s stem cells and their progeny?

The Wyss' GeneSkin team is developing breakthrough mRNA therapies that focus on restoring the function of basal skin stem cells by reducing inflammation and mitigating cellular stress, which is critical for skin rejuvenation and hair restoration.

GeneSkin: A Novel mRNA Therapy for Skin and Hair Rejuvenation GeneSkin is developing novel mRNA therapies to rejuvenate skin and hair by targeting basal stem cells. Using advanced microneedle delivery, our non-invasive treatments aim to reduce scarring, reverse aging, and promote hair growth, offering transformative solutions for millions worldwide.

About 2.8 million people are currently living with multiple sclerosis (MS), a devastating autoimmune disease that destroys the protective myelin covering around nerves, disrupting communication between the brain and body, and causing patients’ ability to move and function to progressively decline.

Wyss and Harvard John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences researchers attached their cellular "backpacks" to myeloid cells, the very type of immune cells that cause the MS-triggering nerve inflammation, to reverse the effects of MS in a preclinical model.

A backpack full of multiple sclerosis therapy By Benjamin Boettner (BOSTON) — Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a devastating autoimmune disease that destroys the protective myelin covering around nerves, disrupting communication between the brain and body, and causing patients’ ability to move and function to progressively decline. The Atlas of M...

At last month's Poster & Demo Showcase, members of our community gathered to share their work. We had 50 posters and demos, with representation from more than 15 faculty labs.

Congratulations to the poster contest grand prize winner, Katherine Sheehan, and her collaborators, Haleh Fotowat and Andrew Gabros!

We look forward to seeing what new connections and collaborations form after this energizing day.

David Chou’s work is literally out of this world!

In addition to identifying radiation countermeasures for use on Earth, he is part of the AVATAR project, which aims to understand how humans respond to the health risks inherent to spaceflight.
As a physician-scientist, he’s equally excited about developing therapeutics and contributing to humanity’s future beyond our planet.

Learn more about David and his work in this month’s Humans of the Wyss.

David Chou on keeping people safe from radiation on Earth and beyond The Humans of the Wyss (HOW) series features members of the Wyss community discussing their work, the influences that shape them as professionals, and their collaborations at the Wyss Institute and beyond. David Chou’s work is literally out of this world! In addition to identifying radiation count...

More than one in five U.S. adults experience mental illness each year, but in 2024, only 52.1% of them received treatment. One reason people are reluctant to seek help is because of the stigma surrounding mental health.

Unfortunately, that stigma also impacts their friends, family, and caregivers, something Research Assistant Matthew Woodworth is all too familiar with.

In August 2024, Woodworth joined the CircaVent team at the Wyss to help advance scientific understanding of the causes underlying bipolar disorder and eventually identify new and better treatments, driven by two factors: his experience growing up with a parent with a substance use disorder and a deep fascination with organoids and their potential to transform biomedical research and human health.

For Mental Health Awareness Month, we sat down with Woodworth to discuss his personal and professional background, how that informs his work on the CircaVent project, and the positive impact he hopes his work can have on patients and their families.

Destigmatizing mental health and democratizing brain-related research By Jessica Leff More than one in five U.S. adults experience mental illness each year, but in 2024, only 52.1% of them received treatment. One reason people are reluctant to seek help is because of the stigma surrounding mental health. Often, that stigma comes from a lack of understanding and fear.....

"This is just a first step, but it’s an important one because it gives us something measurable. Our vision is to create a test to diagnose [dementia] patients, monitor treatment efficacy in clinical trials, and follow patient progression," explains Core Faculty member David Walt.

A collaborative team of researchers at the Wyss and Mass General Brigham developed an ultrasensitive test capable of detecting abnormal clumps of a protein called TDP-43, which defines a specific subtype of frontotemporal lobar degeneration pathology called FTLD-TDP.

Ultrasensitive test detects biomarkers for specific form of dementia By MGB Communications (BOSTON) — Dementia affects over 57 million people worldwide, a number expected to nearly double in the next 20 years. This permanent loss of cognitive abilities affects daily function and can be caused by multiple brain pathologies, including well known ones like Alzheimer.....

Breast cancer, the most common cancer worldwide, affects nearly 15% of all women. Most undergo some kind of mastectomy as part of their treatment, and 40% of those have reconstruction surgery to feel whole again. Unfortunately, the current options all come with significant health risks.

Wyss researchers developed ReConstruct, a new approach to creating living tissue implants from a patient's own cells for reconstruction surgery. Their method combines three tissue engineering techniques and offers a more natural solution with fewer health risks.

ReConstruct: Vascularized Tissue for Breast Reconstruction and Augmentation ReConstruct is a platform for growing, vascularizing, and implanting patient-derived tissues that enable safer breast reconstruction after cancer surgery.