Current Research

Our lab has recently described the isolation of a non-hematopoietic human umbilical cord perivascular cell (HUCPVC) population. Of particular interest is investigating the potential of these cells in cell based therapies for treatment of a range of mammalian connective tissue pathologies. A well established ability of HUCPVCs is their rapid differentiation into fibroblasts in normal culturing conditions. Under appropriate conditions, fibroblasts produce collagens as an extracellular matrix (ECM) and I would like to study the ability of HUCPVCs to produce a collagenous ECM similar to what is seen in tendons and ligaments.

Previous studies have shown that bone marrow derived stem cells can align and develop fibroblastic phenotypes under mechanical strain. The other aspect of this project would be to grow HUCPVCs in a mechanical bioreactor system, and observe whether they act in the same way. HUCPVCs have been shown to be mechanoresponsive at the molecular level in a previous study, and I would like to build on and extend these preliminary studies. We hypothesize that HUCPVCs will align and produce collagens in a mechanically strained environment. If proven correct, these cells will have enormous potential in usage for treatment of tendon and ligament injuries.

Background

• I earned my B.Sc. in Molecular and Cellular Biology from University of California, Berkeley. My research experience during my undergraduate studies can be summarized in two main projects. One involved a computational study of the molecular dynamics of Filamin, and the other one involved using molecular markers to map the blueberry2 gene, an embryonic lethal gene in Arabidopsis thaliana (ecotype: Landsberg) plants.
• I also have two years of tutoring and teaching assistantship experience in courses such as General/Organic Chemistry, Biology, and Calculus at the undergraduate level.

Awards and Scholarships

• 2005-06: Biology Fellows Scholarship, University of California Berkeley.
• Fall 2005: Molecular and Cell Biology Honors, University of California Berkeley.
• 2004-05: Certificate of Achievement for Faithful and Dedicated Service as a Peer Tutor.
• 2004-05: Academic Achievement Award, College Writing and Composition, Foothill College.
• 2003-04: Certificate of Achievement for Faithful and Dedicated Service as a Peer Tutor.
• 2003-04: Honor student, Foothill College.
• 2003-04: Academic Achievement Award, Chemistry, Foothill College.

Publications

• Hamideh Emrani, Kevin Kolahi, Javad Golji, Mohammad Mofrad, "Molecular Dynamics Simulation of Filamin", BMES'06, Chicago, October 2006.
• Hamideh Emrani, "Molecular Mechanics of Filamin", Molecular and Cell Biology Honors Thesis, University of California, Berkeley, May 2006.

Personal Interests

Drawing, calligraphy, Persian traditional music, table tennis, ice skating, and yoga.