Douglas Cowan, PhD
| Department | Anesthesiology |
 |
| Hospital Title | Research Associate | |
| Academic Title | Associate Professor | |
| Phone | 617-919-2655 | |
| Douglas Cowan | ||
| Location |
300 Longwood Avenue Enders Room 312 Boston MA 02115 |
Research Overview
Our laboratory studies the cardiovascular system with a specific focus on combining tissue engineering and stem cell biology to improve heart function in various patient populations.
Current projects in our laboratory include the following:
Cardiac Conduction through Engineered Tissue – We are engineering tissues to act as electrical conduits for use in pediatric patients with complete heart block. Ultimately, we hope to provide a realistic alternative or accessory treatment to conventional cardiac pacemaker implantation in children.
Adult Stem Cell Culture – We are developing methods to expand and control the fate of tissue-specific stem cells to determine their regenerative potential for the treatment of cardiac and skeletal muscle disorders. Our studies are designed to advance cell-based therapies for a variety of human diseases.
Mitochondrial Transplantation – This collaborative project is focused on providing a clinically-relevant treatment for myocardial infarction in adults. Accordingly, we and our colleagues are injecting autologous mitochondria into the heart to decrease the extent of damage and enhance functional recovery.
About Douglas B. Cowan
Douglas Cowan received his PhD from the University of Toronto in 1994. He was a Fellow of the Medical Research Council of Canada at the Samuel Lunenfeld Research Institute at Mount Sinai Hospital before moving to Children's Hospital Boston in 1998.
Dr Cowan is the recipient of several awards and honors including the Stuart Alan Hoffman Award for Research Excellence and one of the 2012 FASEB BioArt Awards.
Key Publications
- Pacak CA, Powers JM, Cowan DB. Ultra-Rapid Purification of Collagen Type I for Tissue Engineering Applications. Tissue Engineering: Part C 2011; 17: 879-885.
- Sill B, Roy N, Hammer PE, Triedman JK, Sigg DC, Kelly MF, Nedder A, Dunning PS, Cowan DB. Development of an ovine model of pediatric complete heart block. Journal of Surgical Research 2011; 166: e103-e108.
- Sill B, Hammer PE, Cowan DB. Optical mapping of Langendorff-perfused rat hearts. Journal of Visualized Experiments 2009; 30: 1138.
- McCully JD, Cowan DB, Pacak CA, Toumpoulis IK, Dayalan H, Levitsky S. Injection of Isolated Mitochondria during Early Reperfusion for Cardioprotection. American Journal of Physiology 2009; 296: H94-H105.
- Cowan DB, McGowan FX. A Paradigm Shift in Cardiac Pacing Therapy? Circulation 2006; 114: 986-988.
- Choi YH, Stamm C, Hammer PE, Kwaku KF, Marler JJ, Friehs I, Jones M, Rader CM, Roy N, Eddy MT, Triedman JK, Walsh EP, McGowan FX, del Nido PJ, Cowan DB. Cardiac Conduction through Engineered Tissue. The American Journal of Pathology 2006; 169: 72-85.
