Dr. Johnny Huard is a Professor, Distinguished Chair for Orthopaedic Research, and Vice Chair for Research in the Department of Orthopedic Surgery at McGovern Medical School at The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston (UTHealth). In addition, Dr. Huard is the Director for Tissue Engineering and Aging Research at The Brown Foundation Institute of Molecular Medicine for the Prevention of Human Diseases. Dr. Huard is also the Chief Scientific Officer and Director of Center for Regenerative Sports Medicine at the Steadman Philippon Research Institute (SPRI) in Vail, Colorado. Dr. Huard joined UTHealth and SPRI from the University of Pittsburgh, where he spent over twenty years as an endowed professor and Vice Chair for the Department of Orthopedic Surgery and Musculoskeletal Cellular Therapeutics. He also served as the Director of the Stem Cell Research Center for University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine.
Dr. Huard completed his Ph.D. in Neurobiology at Laval University in Quebec before earning two post-doctoral degrees in Gene Therapy, the first from McGill University in Quebec, and the second from the University of Pittsburgh in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
Dr. Huard possesses extensive knowledge in the areas of gene therapy, tissue engineering, regenerative medicine, and aging applications based on the use of muscle-derived stem cells (MDSCs). His primary areas of interest are in basic stem cell biology and their translation to clinic to aid in the healing and regeneration of a variety of tissues. His team has received national and international recognition, and the technologies that they have developed have been licensed to industry. Together, Dr. Huard and his team have published over 300 peer reviewed papers, 82 book chapters, and have had 757 abstracts accepted for presentation at national and international conferences. Recently, Dr. Huard received the 2018 Kappa Delta Ann Doner Vaughan Award from the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons. It is a lifetime achievement award presented annually to persons who have performed research in orthopaedic surgery that is of high significance and impact. The awards are presented for outstanding manuscripts that focus on basic and/or clinical research related to the musculoskeletal system.