faculty spanning multidisciplinary departments
Seeking to spur development of innovative medical breakthroughs, Mayo Clinic Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences, in partnership with the Center for Regenerative Medicine, started one of the nation's first doctoral research training programs in regenerative sciences.
Regenerative medicine is transforming clinical practice with the development of new therapies, treatments and surgeries for patients with chronic conditions, debilitating injuries and degenerative diseases. Advances in developmental and cell biology, immunology, and other fields unlock new opportunities for innovative breakthroughs for the next generation of regenerative diagnostic and therapeutic medical solutions.
The Regenerative Sciences (REGS) Ph.D. track at Mayo Clinic is a transdisciplinary Ph.D. program designed to prepare the next generation of scientists to accelerate the discovery, translation, and application of cutting-edge regenerative diagnostics and therapeutics. The REGS Ph.D. track evolved from the Mayo Clinic Regenerative Sciences Training Program (RSTP).
Curriculum
The Regenerative Sciences curriculum encompasses the full spectrum of regenerative science topics, including molecular and cell biology, biomedical engineering, translational science, and more. Learn more about the program's dynamic, evolving curriculum.
See the full Regenerative Sciences Track curriculum (PDF)
Graduates of the Regenerative Sciences Ph.D. Program will be integral to forming the multidisciplinary workforce needed to drive the future of health care at Mayo Clinic and across the world.
Learn more: What is Regenerative Medicine - Mayo Clinic Radio
Focus areas
- Molecular and epigenetic mechanisms of stem and progenitor cell proliferation and differentiation, as well as tissue degeneration and regeneration
- Immune responses to viral insult and tissue healing
- Gene editing for cell therapy applications and to alter disease progression
- Extracellular vesicles in disease progression and for tissue regeneration
- Tissue engineering and bioengineering of novel therapies, including 3-D printing, electrospinning, and advanced biomanufacturing

Mayo Clinic REGS integrates world-class patient care with pioneering biomedical research and education. No other institution matches our faculty, facilities, and funding dedicated to graduate training in regenerative sciences.
Dileep Monie
M.D.-Ph.D. student, Regenerative Sciences Track

Mayo Clinic is an excellent institution to train in regenerative sciences because we are exposed to a diverse body of work being done by world-renowned faculty and our student peers, learning opportunities to better understand the bench-to-business-to-bedside progression in order to improve the translation of regenerative sciences, and ethical implications of the work being done. The devoted group of students and key faculty are approachable and supportive, taking the time to tailor the program.
Catherine Knier
M.D.-Ph.D. student, Regenerative Sciences Track
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The future of medicine relies on regenerative medicine and I intended to anchor my career on designing new stem cell and gene therapies and in making them commercially available. Regenerative medicine is innately interdisciplinary, as it requires expertise of many individuals. This is the best place in the world to train because it provides a framework to develop collaborations within this context and equips me to work effectively in these teams to realize a common goal.
Ramya Rallabandi
Ph.D. student, Regenerative Sciences Track

Mayo Clinic provides unparalleled access to world-renowned clinicians and researchers all focused on clinically relevant research. Mayo Clinic’s Center for Regenerative Medicine permeates throughout the institution. Thus, the REGS program gives students the necessary experience and knowledge to drive future research in restoring form and function in any field of medicine.
Armin Garmany
M.D.-Ph.D. student, Regenerative Sciences Track
Recent thesis topics
2019
- Novel Look Into the Crude Stromal Vascular Fraction (SVF) From Human Adipose-Derived Tissue and Its Role in Regulating the Self-Renewing Capacity of Brain Tumor-Initiating Cells (Mentor: Alfredo Quinones-Hinojosa, M.D.)
- Arterial Extracellular Matrix Scaffolds for Use as Coronary Artery Bypass Grafts (Mentor: Leigh Griffiths, Ph.D., MRCVS)
- Harnessing the Mesenchymal Stem Cell Secretome to Target Alpha-Synuclein-Associated Dysfunction in Parkinson's Disease (Mentor: Pamela McLean, Ph.D.)
- Retinal Neuroprotection Properties of an ATP-Sensitive Potassium Channel Opener (Mentor: Michael Fautsch, Ph.D.)
- Toward Patient-Directed Cell Replacement Therapies for Type 1 Diabetes Management (Mentor: Quinn Peterson, Ph.D.)
- Functional Determination of Intercellular Islet Communication Using Stem Cell-Derived Islet Cell Types (Mentor: Quinn Peterson, Ph.D.)
- Modulation of Chimeric Antigen Receptor-T Cell-Mediated Killing (Mentor: Saad Kenderian, M.B., Ch.B.)
- Network Mechanisms and Bioengineering of Precision Regenerative Immunotherapies for Glioblastoma (Mentors: Hu Li, Ph.D., and Richard Vile, Ph.D.)
- APOE2 Effects on Central and Peripheral Vasculature (Mentor: Guojun Bu, Ph.D.)
- Engineering of Antiviral Extracellular Vesicles (Mentor: Atta Behfar, M.D., Ph.D.)
- Breast Cancer-Derived Extracellular Vesicles in Pre-Metastatic Niche Formation in the Brain (Mentor: Joy Wolfram, Ph.D.)
2018
- Impact of Glioblastoma Proximity on Subventricular Zone Structure and Function (Mentor: Hugo Guerrero Cazares, M.D., Ph.D.)
- Measles Virus Vector for Concurrent Gene Editing and Reprogramming of Fanconi Anemia Fibroblasts (Mentor: Patricia Devaux, Ph.D.)
- Purified Exosome Product Enhances Neovascularization in Peripheral Arterial Disease (Mentors: Atta Behfar, M.D., Ph.D. and Andre Terzic, M.D., Ph.D.)
- Precise Genetic Engineering of Human Primary Cells for Cell Therapy-Based Applications (Mentor: Stephen Ekker, Ph.D.)
2017
- Metabolic Regulation of Muscle Stem Cells (Mentor: Jason Doles, Ph.D.)
- Antigen Presentation by CNS-Resident Microglia and Macrophages Is Required for Antigen-Specific CD8 T Cell Responses in the Brain Following Viral Challenge (Mentor: Aaron Johnson, Ph.D.)
- Epigenetic Control of the Architectural and Trophic Functions of Mesenchymal Stem Cells in Musculoskeletal Tissue Regeneration Therapies (Mentor: Andre van Wijnen, Ph.D.)
Meet the director
Welcome to Regenerative Sciences at Mayo Clinic, where we offer cross-disciplinary graduate studies in the development of advanced regenerative technologies and their medical applications. Students will be equipped with the tools to innovate and advance the regenerative solutions of the future.
Training opportunities extend from fundamental science principles through laboratory skills and hands-on experiences. Students will also have the opportunity to develop an understanding of national and international regulatory agencies, and business requirements and procedures needed to implement the discovery, translation, application pipeline for new regenerative technologies.
We are excited to provide a program of training that will serve as an incubator to develop the next generation of leaders in regenerative science and medicine.
Isobel Scarisbrick, Ph.D.
Regenerative Sciences Track Director
Professor of Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation
Phone: 507-284-0124
Email: Scarisbrick.Isobel@mayo.edu
See research interests