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Sowmya Viswanathan PhD
Scientist at the Osteoarthritis Program/Associate Professor at the Institute of Biomedical Engineering and Department of Medicine
University Health Network
Canada
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Dr. Viswanathan is a Scientist at the Osteoarthritis Program, Division of Orthopedic Surgery, Schroeder Arthritis Institute and the Krembil Research Institute (University Health Network) and an Associate Professor at the Institute of Biomedical Engineering and Department of Medicine, University of Toronto. She is co-Director of the Schroeder Arthritis Advanced Therapeutic Centre.
Her research is focused on using anti-inflammatory approaches to target osteoarthritis (OA), including i) using proprietary enhanced mesenchymal stromal cells (MSCs), and ii) reprograming monocytes/macrophages to more inflammation resolving subtypes using small molecules and gene edited iPSCs. Dr. Viswanathan is a co-Principal Investigator of a recently completed trial using autologous MSCs to treat OA patients, a North American first. Dr. Viswanathan’s publication was cited as the most downloaded paper in Stem Cells Translational Medicine in 2019 and garnered The Arthritis Society’s (TAS) Top 10 Research Advances in 2019.
Dr. Viswanathan is investigating the role of synovium and monocytes/macrophages in OA, with the intention of developing adoptive transfer immunotherapy. Dr. Viswanathan is the recipient of the Biologics Association’s Summit Research Award (2021) for this research. An in vitro OA model demonstrating the role of synovium on cartilage degradation was cited as Top 10 Research Advances of TAS in 2021.
Dr. Viswanathan serves on several committees at the International Society for Cell and Gene Therapy (ISCT) including the MSC committee and the North American Legal and Regulatory Affairs Committee. She is Associate Editor of Cytotherapy, the official journal for ISCT.
Her research is focused on using anti-inflammatory approaches to target osteoarthritis (OA), including i) using proprietary enhanced mesenchymal stromal cells (MSCs), and ii) reprograming monocytes/macrophages to more inflammation resolving subtypes using small molecules and gene edited iPSCs. Dr. Viswanathan is a co-Principal Investigator of a recently completed trial using autologous MSCs to treat OA patients, a North American first. Dr. Viswanathan’s publication was cited as the most downloaded paper in Stem Cells Translational Medicine in 2019 and garnered The Arthritis Society’s (TAS) Top 10 Research Advances in 2019.
Dr. Viswanathan is investigating the role of synovium and monocytes/macrophages in OA, with the intention of developing adoptive transfer immunotherapy. Dr. Viswanathan is the recipient of the Biologics Association’s Summit Research Award (2021) for this research. An in vitro OA model demonstrating the role of synovium on cartilage degradation was cited as Top 10 Research Advances of TAS in 2021.
Dr. Viswanathan serves on several committees at the International Society for Cell and Gene Therapy (ISCT) including the MSC committee and the North American Legal and Regulatory Affairs Committee. She is Associate Editor of Cytotherapy, the official journal for ISCT.