Mission:
establish biomedical pipeline and curricula to build academic-industry partnerships to create sex-selective diagnostic tools and therapies
Innovation and convergence of genomics, high speed computing and nanotechnology are changing the needs for tomorrow’s biomedical workforce.
New approaches are needed to manage transitions from animal → human → commercialization
The TWIN Model
The Translational Workforce Innovation Network (TWIN) represents a strategic enhancement to the existing U54 SCORE program, leveraging the expertise of the Mass General Hospital Research Institute Longfellow Project to facilitate a seamless transition from basic research to clinical applications and commercialization.
Need to reimagine the requirements of academia to ensure training will fill actual industry needs
ICON-X faculty (under the leadership of Drs. Goldstein and Tobet in tandem with Mass General Hospital (MGH) Research Institute Strategic Alliance program with Dr. Gabriela Apiou) received funding from NIH-Office for Research on Women’s Health to build a novel biomedical-science pipeline/curricula incorporating sex differences knowledge into academic-industry (public-private) partnerships → the Translational Workforce Innovation Network (or, TWIN).
TWIN is a collaboration between Mass General Hospital, Mass General Brigham Innovations, Colorado State University, and University of Arizona-College of Medicine Phoenix involving cross-sector training with multi-level, multidisciplinary mentoring, entrepreneurship, biomedical engineering, technology development and transfer, and data science combined with knowledge of sex differences in the brain and body.
TWIN will increase the playing field for women and under-represented minorities and create potential new employment opportunities. Trainees will be ambassadors for creating a more informed translationally focused workforce. We will insure dissemination to the scientific and medical communities, policy makers, and other industries.
Our ultimate goal: Create a workforce and industry commitment to develop sex-selective diagnostic tools and therapies with key targets for precision medicine
Univ. of AZ photography credit: BIO5 Institute
Three TWIN pilot projects launched for proof-of-principle -- targeted to the unmet need of sex differences in the comorbidity of depression and cardiovascular disease, one of the primary causes of disability worldwide.
Build a Sex-Selective Cytokine Signature Diagnostic Tool for Major Depression
Build Sex-Selective Augmentation of Neuromodulatory Therapies
Develop Neurovascular Imaging Tools to Identify Sex-Selective Blood Brain Barrier (BBB) Leakage
TWIN Senior Faculty
