Announcing the CTMR Year 8 Pilot Award Recipients

We are excited to announce the recipients of the Center for Translational Muscle Research (CTMR) Pilot Award Program for Year 8! This program supports innovative, early-stage research projects that advance our understanding of muscle biology and translate discoveries toward clinical impact.

This year’s pilot awards are made possible through the generous support of the National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases (NIAMS) of the National Institutes of Health under Award Number P30AR074990, together with internal matching funds from the School of Medicine, the College of Engineering, the Office of Research, the Institute for Stem Cell and Regenerative Medicine (ISCRM), the Center for Cardiovascular Biology (CCB), and the Departments of Bioengineering and Mechanical Engineering. We are grateful for this continued partnership, which allows us to invest in bold, high-potential research and support the next generation of discoveries in muscle science.

Please join us in congratulating this year’s awardees and read more about their projects at our Pilot Grant page:

Matthew Campbell, PhD, Research Assistant Professor, Radiology Exercise training effects in three-dimensional engineered muscle tissue

Xinxian Deng, PhD, Research Associate Professor, Laboratory Medicine and Pathology Christine M. Disteche, PhD, Professor, Laboratory Medicine and Pathology Functional analyses of muscle cells with a different number of sex chromosomes

Haiming Kerr, PhD, Acting Assistant Professor, Medicine, Division of Gerontology and Geriatric Medicine AMPK regulation of contractility in 3D-engineered muscle tissues under humanized cachectic conditions

Cole DeForest, PhD, Professor, Chemical Engineering & Bioengineering In-Situ Manipulation of cMyBP-C Function in Human iPSC-Derived Cardiomyocytes

Michael Bamshad, MD, Professor, Pediatrics Christian Mandrycky, PhD, Research Scientist, Bioengineering Characterizing a newly generated rat model of Distal Arthrogryposis

Alec Smith PhD, Assistant Professor, Neurobiology and Biophysics Modeling sexual dimorphism in skeletal muscle function using stem cell-derived engineered tissues

Two of this year’s projects — led by Xinxian Deng and Christine Disteche, and by Alec Smith — are part of a growing body of CTMR-supported research into sex-based differences in muscle biology and disease, alongside a Year 7 pilot award to Jenny Robinson, PhD, (Orthopaedics and Sports Medicine, and Mechanical Engineering), titled: “Interplay of Estrogen Receptor Alpha Isoforms and Mechanotransduction in Female Human Mesenchymal Stromal Cells.” Read more about how these pilot grants are advancing this area of study in Pilot Grants Support Studies of Sex-Based Differences in Muscle Biology from UW Bioengineering.

Congratulations to all of our Year 8 pilot awardees! We look forward to seeing the impact of this year’s projects and thank our funders for making this program possible.

Join us at the 7th Annual CTMR Symposium

Want to hear more about these projects? Join us at the 7th Annual CTMR Symposium to hear talks about these exciting new projects, as well as outcomes from Year 7 pilot awards.

THEME: Engineered Muscle Tissues and Organoids

WHEN: Wednesday, September 16, 2026 | 9:00 am – 6:00 pm PT

WHERE: UW South Lake Union (SLU) campus, 850 Republican St., Seattle, WA 98109, C Building, Orin Smith Auditorium & Zoom

We hope to see you there!