(8 5) 262 8636 imc@imcentras.lt Santariškių g. 5, LT-08406, Vilnius Version for the disabled

Department of regenerative medicine

PhD Eiva Bernotienė

Head of the Department
+370 5 2626049

Demographic change and a rapidly aging population is driving policy-makers and scientists to accelerate their efforts to innovate in healthcare, especially in the area of tissue repair, regeneration and reconstruction and the design of new therapeutic strategies for degenerative, inflammatory or environmental factor-associated diseases of synovial joints, cardiovascular system or lungs.

Relevant technical facilities together with high intellectual potential are concentrated at the Department of Regenerative Medicine of the CIM. The department employs experienced scientists, including molecular biologists, immunologists, physiologists, pathologist, collaborating clinical scientists and medically qualified doctors, who have extensive networks and numerous collaborations worldwide. Our staff participate in joint European, industrial and international projects.

We have high level collaboration with laser physicists, chemists, surgeons, rheumatologists and other professionals, which makes our department an ideal partner for joint multidisciplinary projects and European Commission consortia.

Scintific research implemented in this department

Experiences of investigators

We apply innovative technologies and have extensive expertise in isolating and cultivating primary cells, e.g. human mesenchymal stromal/stem cells (MSCs), other progenitor and differentiated cells, their characterization, expansion, manipulation and implementation of innovative regenerative technologies.

We have developed detailed protocols and standard operating procedures for the isolation and characterization of MSCs and other cells from a variety of human tissues, including bone marrow, articular cartilage, adipose tissue, cardiac muscle, skeletal muscle, menstrual blood and synovial fluid. We have extensive knowledge and experience of a wide range of morphological and functional assays for the characterisation of adult MSCs and progenitors and differentiated cells, as well as induced pluripotent stem cells.

Our current research is done to understand the biological properties of these cells and their potential for clinical applications, including possible mechanisms of action, safety and targeted regeneration. We have the capacity for establishing ex-vivo models of human cartilage, synovial tissue and cultures of isolated chondrons. We employ electric and mechanical stimulation and the analysis of mechanotransduction pathways well is within range of our capacity and scientific expertise.

Current research topics focus on degenerative and inflammatory diseases and cellular therapies with particular emphasis on regenerative medicine for articular cartilage, cardiac and lung tissues.

Fields of the investigation

Principal research topics at the Department of Regenerative Medicine include: studies on the capabilities of cellular therapies for osteoarthritis and cartilage defects, heart and skeletal muscle, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and other degenerative lung diseases, arrhythmias, autoimmune, inflammatory and other diseases; mesenchymal stem cell -based therapies and their cultures in 3D scaffolds for engineering of cartilage, lung, muscle and cardiac tissues, pacemaking technologies; investigation and characterization of aggressive cells in rheumatoid synovium and progenitor cells in cartilage; mechanotransduction and calcium signaling in cartilage and cardiac cells, effects of calcium channel inhibitors, epigenetic changes, including methyl, acetyl and other groups, modifying agents and their effect to the cells; application of photodynamic therapy, nanomedicine and others.

The search of disease biomarkers for osteoarthritis and development of multiplexed immunodetection nanobiosensor are the important fields of our interests at the department. We also work in the area of respiratory health assessing mechanisms of injury, i.e. cigarette smoking, air pollution etc., designing novel models and markers for in vitro studies and investigating novel candidate therapies.

Laboratory equipment

Capital Equipment and Research Infrastructure

The department is well-equipped with cell culture facilities, including two CO2 incubators (O2 controlled), mechanical compression system (Flexcell FX-5000), electric stimulation system, flow cytometer/sorter (FACS Aria), fluorescent and light microscopes, scanning fluorescent fully automated, high-resolution EVOS M7000 Imaging System, functional histology and immunohistochemistry lab, equipment for PCR, RTq-PCR, western blotting, 2D electrophoresis, cell electroporation, multiplex detection system (Luminex), plate-reader “Spectramax” for measurement of absorbance, fluorescence and luminescence, magnetic particle-based cell sorter (MACS), ultra-low temperature freezer (-150˚C), etc.

Models

Cells and Tissues
  • Primary tissue-derived explant cultures of cartilage, meniscus and synovium.
  • 2-D and 3-D culture of primary chondrocytes and chondrons from cartilage.
  • 2-D and 3-D culture of primary human cardiac and skeletal muscle-derived cells.
  • 2-D and 3-D culture of primary bone marrow, synovial, adipose tissue, placental, dental pulp, umbilical and menstrual blood-derived cells.
  • In vitro models of chondrogenic, cardiogenic, myogenic, epithelial, osteogenic tissue differentiation in various artificial niches and tissue-specific environments, i.e. scaffolds, hydrogels, spheroids and high-density systems.
  • Modelling of mechanical load effects on 3-D chondrocyte or cardiac cell cultures, cartilage or cardiac tissue explants, using the Flexcell system.
  • Development of ‘Organ-on-Chip’ models of lung tissue using established lung-derived cell-lines, scaffolds and decellularized lung explants.
Animals
  • Animal models of osteoarthritis, inflammatory arthritis, wound healing, subcutaneous implants of engineered tissue in vivo, exposure of laboratory animals to pollution
Devices
  • Experimental development and pre-clinical implementation of 2D and 3D devices suitable for the investigations of cartilage, skeletal, cardiac, pulmonary and other types of biomodels in vitro and in vivo.
Equipment
  • Quantitative RT-PCR.
  • Transfection models for gene expression and silencing.
  • Proteomic analysis of cells, tissues and secretomes using western blotting, ELISA, Spectramax and Luminex-based platforms, etc.
  • Microscopic imaging using light, fluorescent, confocal microscopes, quantitative analysis of fluorescence using EVOS M7000 Imaging System.
  • Analysis of cell surface/cytoplasmic markers and cell sorting with the FACS Aria II/magnetic activated cell sorting (MACS).
  • Multiplexed biomarker detection from blood, plasma, serum, culture medium with Luminex 200 system.
  • Platforms for mechanical and electric stimulation of cells.
  • Equipment for histological and immunohistochemical analysis of samples.

Topics of scientific research

Main recently implemented projects at Department of Regenerative Medicine:

  • International Framework Programme FP7, Large Scale Collaborative Project “Adipose Derived Stromal Cells for Osteoarthritis Treatment” Acronym ADIPOA. Leader of IMC partner Dr. E. Bernotiene
  • Global Dotation “Native matrix-based in vitro model of alveolar lung tissue: implications of mesenchymal stem cells in emphysema repair” Leader Dr. Ruta Aldonyte.
  • ESFA project „Development of Biological cardiac pacemaker” BIOCARDIOSTIM; Leader of IMC partner Dr. E.Bernotiene.

 

Main current projects at Department of Regenerative Medicine

  • High-level R&D project: “L-type calcium channels as potential therapeutic targets for osteoarthritic cartilage metabolic processes” (Project number: DOTSUT-215), 2018-2021. Project Leader:  Prof. A. Mobasheri;
  • Project funded by Research Council of Lithuania: Analysis of The Regenerative Potential and Mechanoptosis of Primary Cardiospheres of Human Heart Muscle; 2017-2020. Project Leader: Dr. D. Bironaite
  • Joint Lithuanian–Latvian–Chinese (Taiwanese) Tripartite Cooperation Programme in the Fields of Science and Technologies: “Creating a new type of injectable biomimetic hydrogel for cartilage tissue engineering” (Project Contract Number: S-LLT-18-4); 2018-2020; Project Leader:  Dr. E. Bernotiene
  • SMART projects (Targeted Research in Smart Specialisation Areas (Funding instrument – European Regional Development Fund): measure implementation is managed by the Ministry of Education, Science and Sport of the Republic of Lithuania and the Research Council of Lithuania. The purpose of the measure is to implement research projects intended to develop results compliant with R&D relevant for economic sectors and that could subsequently be commercialised):
  1. High-level R&D SMART project: Development of a nanobiosensor: a multiplex analysis of diagnostic biomarkers for personalization of arthritis therapy (Agreement No. DOTSUT-1 (01.2.2-LMT-K-718-02-0022), 2019-2022; Project Leader: A. Mobasheri; principal member of the research at host Institution IMC Dr. E. Bernotienė; Budget: € 996 215
  2. Individualised nasal microbiome test – novel tool for diagnostics and health care (YourAirwayMicrobiome); 2020-2023 Budget: € 529 766; coordinated by IMC, Project Leader Dr. R. Aldonyte.
  3. Cellular nanofiber matrix-based biosensors – integrated platform for the cytotoxicity assays of air pollution (AerocellTox) – 2020-2023, Budget: € 698030; project is coordinated by Kaunas University of Technology (leader D. Martuzevicius), IMC is partnering Institution, Leader of the Partner IMC R. Aldonyte.
  • Projects funded by European Union’s Horizon H2020 research and innovation programme:
  1. The HBM4EU project, Human Biomonitoring for EU, funded under the grant agreement No 733032. (2017-2022) EC funding: 50 mln. €, total budget – 75 mln. €. Leader of the Partner IMC R. Aldonyte.
  2. Horizon 2020 Call: H2020-NMBP-TR-IND-2018-2020 (TRANSFORMING EUROPEAN INDUSTRY): ElectroMechanoActive Polymer-based Scaffolds for Heart-on-Chip, 2020-2024. Total budget 5.356.096 €; IMC Partner 736.250 €. Coordinator: Dr. Christian Bergaud; Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique CNRS (CNRS) FR; Leader of IMC partner Dr. E. Bernotiene.

Contacts:

Head of Department of Regenerative Medicine: Dr. Eiva Bernotiene.

Phone: (+370) 5 2626049; +37068377130, e-mail: eiva.bernotiene@imcentras.lt>

The e-mail addresses of the employees are based on the principle: name.surname@imcentras.lt

Chief Researcher
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Prof. Ali Mobasheri

Chief Researcher
Education Doctor of Philosophy, March 1997, Physiological Sciences (Cellular and Molecular Physiology), Wolfson College, University of Oxford (Ph.D. funded by Arthritis Research UK)
Master of Science, March 1993, Physiology and Biochemistry, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada (Recipient of two University of Toronto Open Fellowships)
Bachelor of Science, July 1990, Biochemistry (Upper Second Class Honours)
Imperial College London
Associate of the Royal College of Science, July 1990, Biochemistry (Upper Second Class Honours) Royal College of Science, London
The topic and institution of the defended work Wolfson College, University of Oxford
D.Phil. Thesis:
MOBASHERI, ALI, 1996. The effect of the extracellular environment on sodium pump density in cartilage. University of Oxford.
Employment Academic and Research Positions:
University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK – 1997
University of Westminster, London, UK – 1997-2000
University of Liverpool, Liverpool, UK – 2000-2006
University of Nottingham, Nottingham, UK – 2006-2014
King AbdulAziz University, Jeddah, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia – 2013-2016
University of Surrey, Guildford, UK – 2014-2018
IMC, Vilnius, Lithuania – 2019-Present
University of Oulu, Oulu, Finland – 2019-Present
Utrecht University, Utrecht, the Netherlands – 2020 -Present
Visiting Positions:
Harvard University, Boston, USA – 2020-Present
Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, China – 2020-Present
Publications 285 papers in PubMed
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/?term=Mobasheri+A&sort=date
322 paper in Scopus
https://www.scopus.com/authid/detail.uri?authorId=7003311894 
Projects Involved in several projects funded by the European Commission
Areas of interest, directions of cooperation

Ali Mobasheri is President of the Osteoarthritis Research Society International (OARSI) and Professor of Musculoskeletal Biology in the Research Unit of Medical Imaging, Physics and Technology within the Faculty of Medicine at the University of Oulu in Finland. Ali holds the position of Chief Researcher in the State Research Institute Centre for Innovative Medicine in Vilnius, Lithuania and is an Associate Professor in the Department of Orthopaedics and the Departments of Rheumatology and Clinical Immunology at University Medical Centre Utrecht in the Netherlands.

Visiting Professor, Harvard University, Boston, USA

Visiting Professor, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangdong, China

Ali has authored more than 280 papers and served on several editorial boards. He was educated at Dulwich College London, Imperial College London, the University of Toronto and the University of Oxford, where he obtained his doctorate from Wolfson College Oxford. His current H-index is 60 and he is ranked as one of the top 10 leading experts in the world on osteoarthritis on expertscape.com.

https://expertscape.com/ex/osteoarthritis

https://www.linkedin.com/in/ali-mobasheri-68009712/

ORCID iD: 0000-0001-6261-1286, https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6261-1286

Chief Researcher
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PhD Rūta Aldonytė

Chief Researcher

Education

 MD, PhD
The topic and institution of the defended work “Alpha-1-antitrypsin deficiency: Implications in COPD”, Lund University, Sweden
Employment Senior research fellow, State Research Institute Center for Innovative Medicine
Publications 1. Aldonyte al. Polymerised alpha-1-antitrypsin is present on lung vascular endothelium. New insights into the biological significance of alpha-1-antitrypsin polymerisation. Histopathology. 2004, 45: 587-92.
2. Aldonyte et al. Analysis of Systemic inflammatory biomarkers in COPD patients. Journal of COPD. 2004, 2: 155-64.
3. Aldonyte et al. Concentration-dependent effects of native and polymerised alpha-1-antitrypsin on primary human monocytes, in vitro. BMC Cell Biology. 2004, 5: 11.
4. Aldonyte et al. Circulating monocytes from healthy and COPD individuals. Respiratory Research. 2003, 4:11.
5. Janciauskiene et al. Detection of circulating and endothelial cell polymers of Z and wild type alpha 1-antitrypsin by a monoclonal antibody. J Biol Chem. 2002, 277: 26540-6.
6. Zelvyte et al. Modulation of inflammatory mediators and PPARgamma and NFkappaB expression by pravastatin in response to lipoproteins in human monocytes in vitro. Pharmacol Res. 2002, 45: 147-54.
7. Aldonyte et al. Effects of differently oxidized LDL on the expression of pro-inflammatory molecules in human monocytes in vitro. In Vitr Mol Toxicol. 2001, 14: 83-97.
8. Aldonyte et al. Endothelial alpha-1-antitrypsin attenuates cigarette smoke induced apoptosis. Journal of COPD. 2008, 5: 153-62.
9. Aldonyte et al. Matrix metalloproteinase-2 is responsible for nuclear matrix degradation in cigarette smoke induced apoptosis in pulmonary artery endothelial cells. Exp Lung Res. 2009, 35: 59-75.
10. Aldonyte et al. Human neutrophil peptide 2 impairs wound-induced migration of cultured pulmonary artery endothelial cells. Acta Medica Lithuanica. 2008, 15: 206-210.
11. Pivoriunas et al. Proteomic analysis of stromal cells derived from the dental pulp of human exfoliated deciduous teeth. Stem Cells Dev. 2010; 19: 1081-93.
12. Aldonyte et al. Effects of major human antiprotease alpha-1-antitrypsin on the motility and proliferation of stem cells from human exfoliated deciduous teeth. Regen Med. 2010; 5: 633-43.
13. Tunaitis et al. Effects of different sera on adipose tissue-derived mesenchymal stromal cells. J Tissue Eng Regen Med. 2011; 5: 733-46.
14. Jarmalaviciute et al. A New Experimental Model for Neuronal and Glial Differentiation Using Stem Cells Derived from Human Exfoliated Deciduous Teeth. J Mol Neurosci. 2013, 2: 307–317.
15. Bagdonas et al. Novel aspects of pathogenesis and regeneration mechanisms in COPD. International Journal of COPD. 2015, 10: 995-1013.
16. Bruzauskaite et al. Native matrix-based human lung alveolar tissue model in vitro: studies of the reparatory actions of mesenchymal stem cells. Cytotechnology. 2017, 1: 1-17.
17. Raudoniute et al. Pro-inflammatory effects of extracted urban fine particulate matter on human bronchial epithelial cells BEAS-2B. Environ Sci Pollut Res Int. 2018; 25: 32277-32291.
18. Grauzdyte et al. Cytoprotective effects of mangiferin and Z-ligustilide in PAH-exposed human airway epithelium in vitro. Nutrients. 2019; 11, 218.
19. Kulvinskiene et al. Lung alveolar tissue destruction and protein citrullination in diesel exhaust-exposed mouse lungs. Basic Clin Pharmacol Toxicol. 2019; 125(2):166-177.
20. Kulvinskiene et al. Biomatrices for Heart Regeneration and Cardiac Tissue Modelling In Vitro. Adv Exp Med Biol. 2020;1298:43-77.
Projects 1. Grant (ES SF foundation, 2013-15): Native matrix-based in vitro model of alveolar lung tissue: implications of mesenchymal stem cells in emphysema repair.
2. National science program “Healthy Aging” (2016-18): Air pollution effects in lung tissue: biomarkers and preventive strategies.
3. Human Biomonitoring for EU (HBM4EU) (2017-21): Horizon 2020. project.
4. SMART project: Individualised nasal microbiome test – novel tool for diagnostics and health care (YourAirwayMicrobiome)“ (2020-2023).
5. SMART project: Whole-Cell Biosensors on Nanofibre Membranes – a New Integral Plaform for Researching Air Pollutant Cytotoxicity (AeroCellTox)“ (2020-2023).
Areas of interest, directions of cooperation

Human biomonitoring strategies, effects of air pollution and cigarette smoking on human health, search for preventive strategies , biomarkers of pollutants and effects, biomodels of tissues and diseases, biosensors.  Studies on the mechanisms and signaling systems in inflammation (tissues of airways and lungs). Pathogenetic mechanisms in COPD and other chronic diseases. Stem cell therapies. Biochemistry of inflammatory proteins, serpins, post-translational modifications of proteins. Studies on human airway microbiome.

Researcher
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PhD  Jaroslav Denkovskij

Researcher
Education 2007–Bachelor of Science in Biology, Vilnius University, the Faculty of Natural Sciences.
2010–Master of Science in Genetics, Vilnius University, the Faculty of Natural Sciences.
2021–Doctor of Philosophy, Natural Sciences, Biology
The topic and institution of the defended work Investigation of mesenchymal stem cell properties in degenerative and inflammatory diseases. Vytautas Magnus University and State Research Institute Centre for Innovative Medicine.
Employment Junior researcher at the department of regenerative medicine
Publications 1. Uzieliene I., Denkovskij J., Bernotiene E., Kalvaityte U., Vaiciuleviciute R., RamosY. F. M., Mobasheri A. (2021) Protocol for the Isolation of Intact Chondrons from Healthy and Osteoarthritic Human Articular Cartilage. In: Haqqi T.M., Lefebvre V. (eds) Chondrocytes. Methods in Molecular Biology, vol 2245. Humana, New York, NY.
2. Reza Mohammadinejad, Milad Ashrafizadeh, Abbas Pardakhty, Ilona Uzieliene, Jaroslav Denkovskij, Eiva Bernotiene, Lauriane Janssen, Gabriela S. Lorite, Simo Saarakkala, Ali Mobasheri. Nanotechnological strategies for osteoarthritis diagnosis, monitoring, clinical management, and regenerative medicine: recent advances and future opportunities. Curr Rheumatol Rep 22, 12 (2020).
3. Ilona Uzieliene, Eiva Bernotiene, Greta Rakauskiene, Jaroslav Denkovskij, Edvardas Bagdonas, Zygmunt Mackiewicz, Narunas Porvaneckas, Giedrius Kvederas, Ali Mobasheri. The Antihypertensive Drug Nifedipine Modulates the Metabolism of Chondrocytes and Human Bone Marrow-Derived Mesenchymal Stem Cells. Front. Endocrinol. 10:756. doi: 10.3389/fendo.2019.00756 (2019).
4. Denkovskij J, Bagdonas E, Kusleviciute I, Mackiewicz Z, Unguryte A, Porvaneckas N, Fleury S, Venalis A, Jorgensen Ch, Bernotiene E. Paracrine Potential of the Human Adipose Tissue–Derived Stem Cells to Modulate Homeostasis Between Matrix Metalloproteinases and Their Inhibitors in the Osteoarthritic Cartilage In Vitro. Stem Cells Int. 2017, 2017:9542702.
5. Bruzauskaite I, Raudoniute J, Denkovskij J, Bagdonas E, Meidute-Abaraviciene S, Simonyte V, Bironaite D, Siaurys A, Bernotiene E, Aldonyte R. Native matrix-based human lung alveolar tissue model in vitro: studies of the reparatory actions of mesenchymal stem cells. Cytotechnology. 2017, 69(1): 1–17.
6. Bruzauskaite I, Bironaite D, Bagdonas E, Skeberdis V A, Denkovskij J, Tamulevicius T, Uvarovas V, Bernotiene E. Relevance of HCN2-expressing human mesenchymal stem cells for the generation of the biological pacemaker. Stem cell research and therapy. 2016, 7(1): 67.
7. Denkovskij J, Rudys R, Bernotiene E, Minderis M, Bagdonas S, Kirdaite G. Cell surface markers and exogenously induced PpIX in synovial mesenchymal stem cells. Cytometry A. 2015, 87 (11): 1001–11.
8. Rudys R, Denkovskij J, Kirdaite G, Bagdonas S. Induction of protoporphyrin IX in patient-derived synoviocytes, cartilage explants and chondrons after application of 5-aminolevulinic acid or its methyl ester. J Photochem Photobiol B. 2014, 141: 228–34.
9. Denkovskij J, Bernotiene E, Kirdaite G, Streckyte G, Rudys R, Bagdonas S. Surface markers of synovial mesenchymal stem cells: Refinement of flow cytometric analysis. Medical Physics in the Baltic states 9. Technologija. 2011, 23–26.
10. Naugžemys D., Žilinskaitė S., Denkovskij J., Patamsytė J., Literskis J.,Žvingila D. RAPD based study of genetic variation and relationships among Lonicera germplasm accessions. Biologija. 2007, vol. 13(3), p. 34-39.
Projects 1. 2010–2012 „Model of reumatoidal arthritis photosensitized therapy in vitro“. Grant No. MIP-121/2010
2. 2010–2014 7WP Health-2009-1.4-3 collaborative Project large scale intergrating project “Adipose derived stromal cells for osteoarthritis treatment” Acronym ADIPOA. Grant No. 241719
3. 2013–2015 „Native matrix-based in vitro model of alveolar lung tissue: implications of mesenchymal stem cells in emphysema repair”. Grant No. VPI-3.1-ŠMM-07-K-03-052.
4. 2013–2015 “Creation of biological pacemaker (BIOKARDIOSTIM)”. Grant No. VP1-3.1.-ŠMM-10-V-02-029.
5. 2017–2020 „Mechanotransductive L-type Calcium Channels as a Therapeutic Target for Metabolic Modulation of Osteoarthritic Cartilage“. EU fund grant No. 09.3.3-LMT-K-712-01-0157.
6. 2019–2023 „Development of a nanobiosensor: a multiplex analysis of diagnostic biomarkers for personalization of osteoarthritis therapy“ (SMART). Grant No. 01.2.2-LMT-K-718-02-0022.
7. 2019–2021 „Liver tissue engineering through 3D hepatocyte organoids and smart biomaterials“ Grant No. S-MIP-19-55.
8. 2017– 2020 „Analysis of immunological, genetic, and epigenetic factors in pathogenesis of autoimmune arthritis“. Grant No. S-MIP-17-12
Areas of interest, directions of cooperation

Field of scientific interests: research on mesenchymal stem cells, chondrocytes and synoviocytes properties, and their intracellular mechanisms. Photodynamic therapy and the use of stem cells in the development of new strategies for the treatment of rheumatic diseases.

 

PhD Candidate
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Raminta Vaičiulevičiūtė

PhD Candidate

Education

 Master’s degree in Pharmacy (Lithuanian university of Health Science); Master’s degree in Life Sciences (Vilnius university)
The topic and institution of the defended work Human interleukin IL-2, IL-4, IL-6 and IL-7 biosynthesis in bacteria and insect expression systems (Vilnius university/ UAB „Thermo Fisher Scientific Baltics“)
Publications Uzieliene I, Denkovskij J, Bernotiene E, Kalvaityte U, Vaiciuleviciute R, Ramos YFM, Mobasheri A. Protocol for the Isolation of Intact Chondrons from Healthy and Osteoarthritic Human Articular Cartilage. Methods Mol Biol. 2021;2245:13-22. doi: 10.1007/978-1-0716-1119-7_2. PMID: 33315192.
Projects “L-type calcium channels as potential therapeutic targets for osteoarthritic cartilage metabolic processes”
Areas of interest, directions of cooperation Electric stimulation of MSCs or chondrocytes. HiPSCs application in regenerative medicine.

Senior Researcher
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PhD Edvardas Bagdonas

Senior Researcher

Education

 2000 – Bachelor degree in biology (Vilnius University, Faculty of Natural Sciences)
2002 – Master degree in biology/molecular biology (Vilnius University, Faculty of Natural Sciences).
The topic and institution of the defended work 2006 – The official defense of the dissertation “Application and perspectives of micronuclei analysis in fish erythrocytes for genotoxicity studies in situ and in vivo” was held.
Employment Senior researcher
Publications 1. E. Bagdonas, E. Bukelskis, J. Lazutka. Frequency of micronucleated erythrocytes in wild fish from natural freshwater bodies, Ekologija, 1 (2003) 67-71.
2. J. Baršienė, J. Lazutka, J. Šyvokienė, V. Dedonytė, A. Rybakovas, E. Bagdonas, A. Bjørnstad, O.K. Andersen. Analysis of micronuclei in blue mussels and fish from the Baltic and the North Seas, Environmental Toxicology, 19 (4) (2004) 365-371.
3. E.Bagdonas, K. Žukas. UVC indukuotų DNR pažaidų reparacija Carassius auratus gibelio eritrocituose, Sveikatos mokslai, 2 (2004) 22-24.
4. E. Bagdonas, M.Z. Vosylienė. The study of toxicity and genotoxicity of copper, zinc and their mixture to rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss), Biologija, 1 (2006) 8-13.
5. E. Bagdonas, J. R. Lazutka. Evaluation of DNA damage by means of the comet assay and micronucleus test in erythrocytes of Prussian carp (Carassius auratus gibelio) infected with ulcerative disease, Biologija, 53 (3) (2007) 1-5.
6. E. Bagdonas, A. Ungurytė. Searching for chondroprogenitors in articular cartilage, Laboratorinė medicina, 11, 3 (43) (2009) 172-174.
7. E. Bagdonas, J. Raudoniute, I. Bruzauskaite, R. Aldonyte. Novel aspects of pathogenesis and regeneration mechanisms in COPD, Int J Chron Obstruct Pulmon Dis, (2015) 10:995-1013.
8. I. Bružauskaitė, D. Bironaitė, E. Bagdonas, E. Bernotienė. Scaffolds and cells for tissue regeneration: different scaffold pore sizes – different cell effects, Cytotechnology, 68(3) (2016) 355-369.
9. A. Unguryte, E. Bernotiene, E. Bagdonas, S. Garberyte, N. Porvaneckas, C. Jorgensen. Human articular chondrocytes with higher aldehyde dehydrogenase activity have stronger expression of COL2A1 and SOX9. Osteoarthritis and Cartilage, 24 (2016), 873-882.
10. I.,Bruzauskaite, D. Bironaite, E. Bagdonas, A. Skeberdis, J. Denkovskij, T. Tamulevicius, V. Uvarovas, E. Bernotiene. Relevance of HCN2-expressing human mesenchymal stem cells for the generation of biological pacemaker, Stem Cell Research & Therapy, (2016), accepted, DOI: 10.1186/s13287-016-0326-z.
11. N. Gaur, E. Karouzakis, S Glück, E. Bagdonas, A. Jüngel,B.A.  Michel, R.E. Gay, S. Gay , M. Frank-Bertoncelj, M. Neidhart. MicroRNAs interfere with DNA methylation in rheumatoid arthritis synovial fibroblasts, RMD Open, (2016) Oct 14;2(2):e000299.
12. I. Bruzauskaite, J. Raudoniute, J. Denkovskij, E. Bagdonas, S. Meidute-Abaraviciene, V. Simonyte, D. Bironaite, A. Siaurys, E. Bernotiene,R.  Aldonyte. Native matrix-based human lung alveolar tissue model in vitro: studies of the reparatory actions of mesenchymal stem cells, Cytotechnology, (2017) Feb; 69 (1):1-17. doi: 10.1007/s10616-016-0021-z.
13. J. Denkovskij, E. Bagdonas, I. Kusleviciute, Z. Mackiewicz, A. Unguryte, N. Porvaneckas, S. Fleury, A. Venalis, C. Jorgensen, E. Bernotiene. Paracrine Potential of the Human Adipose Tissue-Derived Stem Cells to Modulate Balance Between Matrix Metalloproteinases and Their Inhibitors in the Osteoarthritic Cartilage In Vitro, Stem Cells International, (2017); 2017:9542702. doi: 10.1155/2017/9542702.
14. J. Raudoniute, I. Stasiulaitiene, I. Kulvinskiene, E. Bagdonas, A. Garbaras, E. Krugly, D. Martuzevicius, D. Bironaite, R. Aldonyte. Pro-inflammatory effects of extracted urban fine particulate matter on human bronchial epithelial cells BEAS-2B, Environ Sci Pollut Res Int., (2018) Nov; 25(32):32277-32291. doi: 10.1007/s11356-018-3167-8.
15. D. Grauzdytė, J. Raudoniūtė, I. Kulvinskienė, E. Bagdonas, I. Stasiulaitienė, D. Martuzevičius, D. Bironaitė, R. Aldonytė, P.R. Venskutonis. Cytoprotective Effects of Mangiferin and Z-Ligustilide in PAH-Exposed Human Airway Epithelium in Vitro, Nutrients, 2019 Jan 22;11(2). pii: E218. doi: 10.3390/nu11020218.
16. I. Kulvinskiene, J. Raudoniute, E. Bagdonas, D. Ciuzas, K. Poliakovaite, I. Stasiulaitiene, D. Zabulyte, D. Bironaite, P.R. Venskutonis, D. Martuzevicius, R. Aldonyte. Lung alveolar tissue destruction and protein citrullination in diesel exhaust exposed mouse lungs, Basic Clin Pharmacol Toxicol., 2019 Feb 24. doi: 10.1111/bcpt.13213.
17. I. Uzieliene, E. Bernotiene, G. Rakauskiene, J. Denkovskij, E. Bagdonas, Z. Mackiewicz, N. Porvaneckas, G. Kvederas, A. Mobasheri. The antihypertensive drug nifedipine modulates the metabolism of chondrocytes and human bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cells. Front Endocrinol (Lausanne). 2019 Nov 8;10:756. doi:10.3389/fendo.2019.00756.
18. E. Bernotiene, E. Bagdonas, G. Kirdaite, P. Bernotas, U. Kalvaityte, I. Uzieliene, C.S. Thudium, H. Hannula, G.S. Lorite, M. Dvir-Ginzberg, A. Guermazi, A. Mobasheri. Emerging Technologies and Platforms for the Immunodetection of Multiple Biochemical Markers in Osteoarthritis Research and Therapy. Front Med (Lausanne). 2020 Oct 21;7:572977. doi: 10.3389/fmed.2020.572977. PMID: 33195320; PMCID: PMC7609858.
19. E. Bernotiene, E. Bagdonas, G. Kirdaite, P. Bernotas, U. Kalvaityte, I. Uzieliene, C.S. Thudium, H. Hannula, G.S. Lorite, M. Dvir-Ginzberg, A. Guermazi, A. Mobasheri. Emerging Technologies and Platforms for the Immunodetection of Multiple Biochemical Markers in Osteoarthritis Research and Therapy. Front Med (Lausanne). 2020 Oct 21;7:572977. doi: 10.3389/fmed.2020.572977. PMID: PMC7609858.
Projects 1. 7WP Health-2009-1.4-3. Grant No. No. 241719. Activation of endogenous cells as an approach to regenerative medicine. Collaborative Project large scale intergrating project “Adipose derived stromal cells for osteoarthritis treatment” Acronym ADIPOA,. 2010-2014.
2. SCIEX fellowship, post-doc at the Zurich University, Center of Experimental Rheumatology, Zurich, Switzerland – “Epigenomic characterization of synovial fibroblasts and epigenetic biomarkers in rheumatoid arthritis”. 2012-2013.
3. Grant No. VP1-3.1-ŠMM-07-K-03-052 “Lung alveolar tissue model in vitro: the impact of MSCs on tissue regeneration”. 2013-2015.
4. Grant No. VP1-3.1.-ŠMM-10-V-02-029 “Creation of biological pacemaker (BIOKARDIOSTIM)”. 2013-2015.
5. Grant No. SEN-16074, “Healthy Aging” programme, “Pulmonary effects of air pollution: indicators for monitoring and regulation by phytochemical compounds”. 2016-2018.
6. Lithuanian-Latvian-Taiwan programme,Grant No. P-LLT-18-21. “Creation on a new type injectable biomimetic hydrogel for cartilage regeneration”. 2018-2020.
7. EU fund grant No. 09.3.3-LMT-K-712-01-0157. „Mechanotransductive L-type Calcium Channels as a Therapeutic Target for Metabolic Modulation of Osteoarthritic Cartilage“ 2017-2021.
8. (SMART) Grant  No.  01.2.2-LMT-K-718-02-0022. „Development of a nanobiosensor: a multiplex analysis of diagnostic  biomarkers for personalization of osteoarthritis therapy“ 2019-2022.
9. (SMART) Grant No. 01.2.2-LMT-K-718-03-0079. „Individualised nasal microbiome test – novel tool for diagnostics and health care (YourAirwayMicrobiome)“ 2020-2023.
10. SMART Grant No. 01.2.2-LMT-K-718-03-0089. „Whole-Cell Biosensors on Nanofibre Membranes – a New Integral Plaform for Researching Air Pollutant Cytotoxicity (AeroCellTox)“ 2020-2023.
Areas of interest, directions of cooperation

2D and 3D (scaffolds, spheroids, hydrogels) human cell cultures. Isolation and expansion of chondrocytes and synoviocytes. RT-qPCR, multiplexed detection system Luminex 100/200, ELISA, cytotoxicity tests. RNR/DNA extraction from difficult tissues (cartilage etc), small cell/tissue samples.

Researcher, Head of biobank
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PhD Aušra Ungurytė

Researcher, Head of biobank

Education

 High
The topic and institution of the defended work Comparison of action kinetics and structure of rat liver cytosolic and mitochondrial pyrophosphatase. Lomonosov Moscow state university.
Employment Researcher
Publications
  1. Denkovskij,J Bagdonas E, Kusleviciute I, Mackiewicz Z, Unguryte A, Porvaneckas N, Fleury S, Venalis A, Jorgensen C, and Bernotiene E. 2017. “Paracrine Potential of the Human Adipose Tissue-Derived Stem Cells to Modulate Balance between Matrix Metalloproteinases and Their Inhibitors in the Osteoarthritic Cartilage In Vitro”. Stem Cells International, Hindawi, Article ID 9542702, IF 2017 – 3.99
  2. Unguryte A, Bernotiene E., Bagdonas E., Garberyte S., Porvaneckas N., Jorgensen C. 2016. “Human articular chondrocytes with higher Aldehyde dehydrogenase activity have stronger expression of COL2A1 and SOX9”. Osteoarthritis and Cartilage 24, 873-882. IF 2014 – 4.17.
  3. K.Daniunaite, I.Serenaite, R.Misgirdaite J.Gordevicius, A.Unguryte, S.Fleury-Cappellesso, E.Bernotiene, S.Jarmalaite. 2015. “Epigenetic regulation of human adipose-derived stem cells differentiation”. Mol Cell Biochem.; 410(1-2):111-120. IF 2014 – 2.39.
  4. Bernotiene E, J.Denkovskij, E.Bagdonas, I.Kusleviciutė, N.Porvaneckas, A.Unguryte, Z.Mackiewicz, “Paracrine effects of human adipose tissue derived stem cells on osteoarthritic cartilage explants in cocultures in vitro”. Annals of the rheumatic diseases. 2014; 73 (Suppl 1):A63-4. doi:10.1136/annrheumdis-2013-205124.144; ISSN 0003-4967, IF – 9.27.
  5. Tunaitis V, Borutinskaitė V, Navakauskienė R, Treigytė G, Ungurytė A, Aldonytė R, Magnusson KE, Pivoriūnas A. Effects of different sera on adipose tissue-derived mesenchymal stromal cells. J Tissue Eng Regen Med. 2011, 5(9): 733-746. ISSN 1932-7005, IF 2013 – 4.4
  6. Unguryte A, Bernotiene E, Venalis A. Human mesenchymal adipose stromal cells from mature adipocyte fraction. Cent. Eur. J. Biol. 2010, 5(1): 47–58. ISSN 1895-104X. IF 2012 – 0.8.
Projects
  1. 7WP Health-2009-1.4-3.Activation of endogenous cells as an approach to regenerative medicine. Collaborative Project large scale intergrating project “Adipose derived stromal cells for osteoarthritis treatment”, Acronym ADIPOA) 2010-2013. Coordinator prof. C. Jorgenssen.
  2. RCL project project for researchers’ groups: „Epigenetic mechanisms of cell differentiation“, MIP 026/ 2012. Head prof. S. Jarmalaitė, VU. 2012-2014,
  3. RCL project project in program ‘Chronic non-infectious deseases’: “Diagnostic and therapeutic value of stem cells from synovial fluid of children with arthritis”, head D. Astrauskienė, 2010-2011,
  4.  LVMSF Project of High Technology program „Technologies for preparation of Human adult mesenchymal stem cells for therapeutic purposes (Citotechnologijos)“. Head A. Pivoriūnas, 2007-2009 m.,
  5. LVMSF Project of scientific program ‘Priority Lithuanian scientific and experimental development’ -, „Fundamental research of stem cell function mechanisms. Citoterapija-2“; Nr. C-07023. 2007-2009, Head prof A. Laucevičius
  6. Program: “Integration of stem cells, their survival and functional effectiveness in pathologic site”. Preclinical studies. (Citoterapija) 2004-2006. Head. Prof. A. Laucevičius
Areas of interest, directions of cooperation

Human chondrocytes, osteoarthritis, human mesenchymal stromal cells, Aldehyde dehydrogenase, retinoic acid signaling.

Researcher
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PhD Rokas Mikšiūnas

Researcher

Education

 2014 – Vilnius university. Bachelor of Genetics.
2016 – Vilnius university. Master of Genetics.
The topic and institution of the defended work Bachelor’s Degree thesis: “Characterization of Uracil-DNA glycosylases from psychrophilic microorganisms” (Thermo Fisher Scientific Baltics, Vilnius)
Master’s Degree thesis: “Development of restriction endonucleases directed in vitro evolution scheme” (Thermo Fisher Scientific Baltics, Vilnius)
Employment Junior Scientist
Publications
  1. R.Miksiunas, A.Mobasheri, D.Bironaite (2020). Homeobox Genes and Homeodomain
    Proteins: New Insights into Cardiac Development, Degeneration and Regeneration.
    Adv Exp Med Biol. 1212:155-178. doi: 10.1007/5584_2019_349
  2. I.Kulvinskiene, R.Aldonyte, R.Miksiunas, A.Mobasheri, D.Bironaite (2020). Biomatrices for Heart Regeneration and Cardiac Tissue Modelling In Vitro. Adv Exp Med Biol. 1298:43-77. doi: 10.1007/5584.
  3. R.Miksiunas, K.Rucinskas, V.Janusauskas, S.Labeit, D.Bironaite (2020). Histone Deacetylase Inhibitor Suberoylanilide Hydroxamic Acid Improves Energetic Status and Cardiomyogenic Differentiation of Human Dilated Myocardium-Derived Primary Mesenchymal Cells. Int J Mol. 21(14):4845. doi: 10.3390/ijms21144845.
  4. J. Petroniene, I. Morkvenaite-Vilkonciene, R. Miksiunas, D. Bironaite, A. Ramanaviciene, L. Mikoliunaite, A. Kisieliute, K. Rucinskas, V. Janusauskas, I. Plikusiene, S. Labeit, A. Ramanavicius (2020). Evaluation of Redox Activity of Human Myocardium-derived Mesenchymal Stem Cells by Scanning Electrochemical Microscopy. Electroanalysis. 32(6), 1337–1345. doi.org/10.1002/elan.201900723
  5. J.Petroniene, I.Morkvenaite-Vilkonciene, R.Miksiunas, D.Bironaite, A.Ramanaviciene, K.Rucinskas, V.Janusauskas, A.Ramanavicius (2020). Scanning electrochemical microscopy for the investigation of redox potential of human myocardium-derived mesenchymal stem cells grown at 2D and 3D conditions. Electrochimica Acta, 360. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.electacta.2020.136956
Projects
  1. Scientist group project: „Evaluation of human heart muscle cardioshere potential and mechanoptosis mechanisms in dilated myocadium mesenchymal stem cells“. S-MIP-17-13. 2017-2020 m.
  2. EU fund grant No. 09.3.3-LMT-K-712-01-0157. „Mechanotransductive L-type Calcium Channels as a Therapeutic Target for Metabolic Modulation of Osteoarthritic Cartilage“ 2018-2021
Areas of interest, directions of cooperation

Impact of 2D and 3D cultivation systems on human skeletal and heart muscle stem cells regenerative potential. Effects of histone deacetilase, heat shock and electric stimulation on mesenchymal stem cells myogenesis, mitochondrial activity and other processes.   

Senior Researcher
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PhD Daiva Bironaitė

Senior Researcher

Education

 Higher university,
PhD, Dr. of Natural sciences
The topic and institution of the defended work Laboratory of Enzyme Chemistry, Institute of Biochemistry, Vilnius. Defended doctoral dissertation “Interaction of NAD(P)H oxidizing flavoproteins with quinones and aromatic nitro compounds”.
Employment Senior Researcher, Department of Regenerative Medicine, State Research Institute, Center for Innovative Medicine
Publications Published more than 50 scientific articles in journals with citation index.
Projects Leads and participates in more than 20 national and international projects.
Areas of interest, directions of cooperation

Investigations of death and survival mechanisms of various cell types, intracellular signaling pathways, oxidative stress and mechanisms of action of chemotherapeutic agents; proliferation and differentiation mechanisms of adult tissue stem cell, stress effects and the role of chaperone proteins in the functioning of cells and tissues, their therapeutic possibilities; regulation of myogenic and cardiomyogenic differentiation.

Trained in various foreign laboratories in Sweden, Finland, America, Germany, etc., actively cooperates with foreign scientists and participates in the submission and implementation of joint projects.

Senior Researcher
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PhD Ilona Uzielienė

Senior Researcher

Education

 2021 – Vilnius university. Bachelor of Biochemistry.
2014 – Vilnius university. Master of Biochemistry.
2020 – Vytauto Didžiojo university/State Research Institute Centre for Innovative Medicine, Department of Regenerative Medicine, Vilnius, Lithuania. PhD in Biology.
The topic and institution of the defended work Doctoral thesis: “Functional characteristics and regulation of intracellular calcium ion signalling in human mesenchymal stem cells of different origins and chondrocytes”. Institution: State Research Institute Centre for Innovative Medicine, Department of Regenerative Medicine.
Employment Researcher at the department of regenerative medicine
Publications 1. I. Uzieliene, G. Urbonaite, Z. Tachtamisevaite, A. Mobasheri, and E. Bernotiene. The Potential of Menstrual Blood-Derived Mesenchymal Stem Cells for Cartilage Repair and Regeneration: Novel Aspects. Stem Cells International (IF: 3.98), vol. 2018, Article ID 5748126, 10 pages, 2018. https://doi.org/10.1155/2018/5748126;
2. Uzieliene I, Bernotas P, Mobasheri A, Bernotiene E. The Role of Physical Stimuli on Calcium Channels in Chondrogenic Differentiation of Mesenchymal Stem Cells. Int J Mol Sci (IF: 4.556). 2018 Oct 1;19(10). pii: E2998. doi: 10.3390/ijms19102998. Review. PMID: 30275359;
3. Mobasheri A, Matta C, Uzielienè I, Budd E, Martín-Vasallo P, Bernotiene E. The chondrocyte channelome: A narrative review. Joint Bone Spine (IF: 3.3). 2018 Feb 13. pii: S1297-319X(18)30015-0. doi: 10.1016/j.jbspin.2018.01.012. PMID: 29452304;
4. Uzieliene I, Bernotiene E, Rakauskiene G, Denkovskij J, Bagdonas E, Mackiewicz Z, Porvaneckas N, Kvederas
G, Mobasheri A. The Antihypertensive Drug Nifedipine Modulates the Metabolism of Chondrocytes and Human Bone Marrow-Derived Mesenchymal Stem Cells. Front Endocrinol (IF: 3.634). 2019 Nov 8;10:756. doi: 10.3389/fendo.2019.00756. eCollection 2019. PMID: 31781032
5. Mobasheri A, van Spil WE, Budd E, Uzieliene I, Bernotiene E, Bay-Jensen AC, Larkin J, Levesque MC, Gualillo O, Henrotin Y. Molecular taxonomy of osteoarthritis for patient stratification, disease management and drug development: biochemical markers associated with emerging clinical phenotypes and molecular endotypes. Curr Opin Rheumatol (IF: 4.2). 2019 Jan;31(1):80-89. doi: 10.1097/BOR.0000000000000567. PMID: 30461544;
6. Mohammadinejad R, Ashrafizadeh M, Pardakhty A, Uzieliene I, Denkovskij J, Bernotiene E, Janssen L, Lorite GS, Saarakkala S, Mobasheri A. Nanotechnological Strategies for Osteoarthritis Diagnosis, Monitoring, Clinical Management, and Regenerative Medicine: Recent Advances and Future Opportunities. Curr Rheumatol Rep (IF: 3.883). 2020 Apr 4;22(4):12. doi: 10.1007/s11926-020-0884-z. PMID: 32248371; PMCID: PMC7128005;
7. Bernotiene E, Bagdonas E, Kirdaite G, Bernotas P, Kalvaityte U, Uzieliene I, Thudium CS, Hannula H, Lorite GS, Dvir-Ginzberg M, Guermazi A, Mobasheri A. Emerging Technologies and Platforms for the Immunodetection of Multiple Biochemical Markers in Osteoarthritis Research and Therapy. Front Med (Lausanne) (IF: 3.9). 2020 Oct 21;7:572977. doi: 10.3389/fmed.2020.572977. PMID: 33195320; PMCID: PMC7609858;
8. Dehshahri A, Kumar A, Madamsetty VS, Uzieliene I, Tavakol S, Azedi F, Fekri HS, Zarrabi A, Mohammadinejad R, Thakur VK. New Horizons in Hydrogels for Methotrexate Delivery. Gels. 2020 Dec 30;7(1):E2. doi: 10.3390/gels7010002.
9. Ilona Uzieliene, Jaroslav Denkovskij, Eiva Bernotiene, Ursule Kalvaityte, Raminta Vaiciuleviciute, Yolande F. M. Ramos, Ali Mobasheri. A Protocol for the Isolation of Intact Chondrons from Healthy and Osteoarthritic Human Articular Cartilage. Book: Methods in Molecular Biology (Springer). Methods Mol Biol (IF: 10.71). 2021;2245:13-22. doi: 10.1007/978-1-0716-1119-7_2;
10. Uzieliene I, Kalvaityte U, Bernotiene E, Mobasheri A. Non-viral Gene Therapy for Osteoarthritis. Frontiers in Bioengineering and Biotechnology (IF: 3.644). 2021 Jan 13. doi.org/10.3389/fbioe.2020.618399
Projects 1. 2017-2021: European Social Fund supported grant ‘Improvement of researchers’ qualification by implementing world-class R&D projects’, Measure No. 09.3.3-LMT-K-712 (grant application code: 09.3.3-LMT-K-712-01-0157, agreement No. DOTSUT-215). Project titled: „Mechanotransductive L-type Calcium Channels as a Therapeutic Target for Metabolic Modulation of Osteoarthritic Cartilage”.
2. 2019-2022: European Social Fund supported grant „Attracting Foreign Researchers for Research Implementation“, titled: „Development of a nanobiosensor: a multiplex analysis of diagnostic biomarkers for personalization of osteoarthritis therapy” Nr. 01.2.2-LMT-K-718-02-0022.
Areas of interest, directions of cooperation

Research field covers stem cell-based methods for tissue regeneration. Investigation of human mesenchymal stem cells isolated from different tissues, as well as chondrocytes isolated from human articular cartilage. Interested in the effects of mechanical and electromagnetic cell stimulation, cell metabolism, application of various types of 3D scaffolds for cell culture, analysis of growth factors and calcium ions in cell differentiation, expression of cell surface markers, disease biomarkers, in vivo systems.

Junior Researher (projects) , PhD Candidate

Uršulė Kalvaitytė

PhD Candidate

Education

 Masters degree in pharmacy (2014-2019); PhD student in biological sciences (from 2019)
Employment PhD student; junior researcher
Publications
  1. Bernotiene E, Bagdonas E, Kirdaite G, Bernotas P, Kalvaityte U, Uzieliene I, Thudium CS, Hannula H, Lorite GS, Dvir-Ginzberg M, Guermazi A, Mobasheri A. Emerging Technologies and Platforms for the Immunodetection of Multiple Biochemical Markers in Osteoarthritis Research and Therapy. Front Med (Lausanne). 2020 Oct 21;7:572977. doi: 10.3389/fmed.2020.572977. PMID: 33195320; PMCID: PMC7609858.
  2. Uzieliene I, Kalvaityte U, Bernotiene E, Mobasheri A. Non-viral Gene Therapy for Osteoarthritis. Front Bioeng Biotechnol. 2021 Jan 13;8:618399. doi: 10.3389/fbioe.2020.618399. PMID: 33520968; PMCID: PMC7838585.
  3. Uzieliene I, Denkovskij J, Bernotiene E, Kalvaityte U, Vaiciuleviciute R, Ramos YFM, Mobasheri A. Protocol for the Isolation of Intact Chondrons from Healthy and Osteoarthritic Human Articular Cartilage. Methods Mol Biol. 2021;2245:13-22. doi: 10.1007/978-1-0716-1119-7_2. PMID: 33315192.
Projects Development of a nanobiosensor: a multiplex analysis of diagnostic biomarkers for personalization of osteoarthritis therapy.
Areas of interest, directions of cooperation

Development and operational testing of new tools, technologies and biomarkers for the early diagnosis of osteoarthritis.
PhD Eiva Bernotiene Head of Department, Chief Researcher
Prof. Ali Mobasheri Chief Researcher
PhD Rūta Aldonytė Chief Researcher
PhD Daiva Bironaite Senior Researcher
PhD Edvardas Bagdonas Senior Researcher
PhD Ilona Uzieliene Senior Researcher (projects)
PhD Ausra Unguryte Researcher, Head of biobank
PhD Jaroslav Denkovskij Researcher
PhD Jovile Raudoniute Researcher
Rokas Miksiunas Researcher
Ursule Kalvaityte Junior Researcher (project), PhD Candidate
Raminta Vaiciuleviciute PhD Candidate
Agnė Vailionytė PhD Candidate
Jolita Pachaleva PhD Candidate
Viktorija Aleksiuk PhD Candidate
Jolita Tamulevičienė Senior Laboratory Assistant
Roma Grinienė Senior Laboratory Assistant
Jolita Tamulevičienė Senior Laboratory Assistant
Saulė Valiūnienė Senior Laboratory Assistant