Dr. Colin Franz: Faculty Experts
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Dr. Colin Franz
Field:
Biomedical Engineering, Human Biology, Neurology, Physical Therapy and Rehabilitation
Focus Areas:
ALS, Neurobiology, Neurodegenerative Disease, Neuroscience, Precision Medicine, Regenerative Medicine, Therapeutics, Wearable Technology
Contact:
Media Relations Contact:
Kristin Samuelson
Northwestern Media Relations
Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, The Graduate School
Associate Professor of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, and of Neurology
About
Areas of Focus
- Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis
- COVID-19
- Peripheral nerve injuries
- Musculoskeletal ultrasound
- Neuromuscular disorders
- Regenerative medicine
- Neurotrauma
Work/Research
- How COVID-19 impacts the neuromuscular system
- Using transient (resorbable) implanted devices to deliver therapeutics directly to regenerating axons
- Peripheral nerve injuries
- Regenerative Medicine
- Making human neurons derived from patient-derived pluripotent stem cells to determine and isolate how individual genetic factors effect neurotrauma outcomes
- Nerve repair
- Electrical stimulation
Career
The goal of regenerative medicine is to boost innate repair processes to restore tissues and improve human function. Incorporation of regenerative principles into practice is extremely relevant to the fields of rehabilitative and neuromuscular medicine since we treat patients with devastating conditions such as neurological trauma and neurodegeneration. Franz's research lab uses a reverse-translation approach that is inspired by the patient populations he serves. To improve clinical relevance, they have developed the capacity for human pre-clinical modeling using the power of induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC) technology. Ultimately, Franz is most interested in the interplay between personal genetic variations and response to traumatic injury and therapies.