Cancer bioengineering
Thermally manipulating biomaterials
The Bischof group studies the thermophysical and biological changes within biomaterials after thermal manipulations. For example, they’re using nanoparticles to rewarm preserved tissues and organs and developing energy-based technologies to improve cancer immunotherapies.
Engineering the immune response
The Hartwell Immunoengineering Lab uses biomolecular engineering, drug delivery, and immunology to develop molecular vaccines and immunotherapies that direct the immune response towards activation or tolerance by targeting specific cells and tissues, with a focus on the mucosal immune system.
Engineering stem cell-derived immunotherapies
The Khalil group uses pluripotent stem cells and genetic engineering to study immune mechanisms in cancer and chronic diseases. By examining pathways that regulate immune cell functions, the lab seeks to create next-generation and transformative cell-based therapeutic strategies and enhance patient outcomes.
How cellular functions go awry
The Odde Lab aims to understand basic cellular functions in the context of diseases such as brain cancer and Alzheimer's. The team develops physics-based models that predict cell behavior, then use computer simulation and live cell imaging to identify potential therapeutic strategies.
Bioengineering cancer therapies
Paolo Provenzano’s lab is developing new ways to combat cancer. Approaches include re-engineering tumor microenvironments to remove tumor-promoting cues, enhancing drug delivery, promoting anti-tumor immune responses, and developing next-generation cell-based therapies.
Understanding protein networks
The Sarkar laboratory uses biomolecular and cellular engineering approaches to elucidate how protein networks drive health-related processes at the cellular level. The group also uses such knowledge to intervene in dysregulated networks in disease and to create cellular therapeutics with new functionalities.
Microphysiologic systems to study disease
The Living Devices Lab is focused on building benchtop systems that mimic human disease outside the human body. We use microfluidics and microfabrication to create engineered tissues in which we control biological components and transport processes at the length scale that is relevant to physiology and pathology.
Research from our graduate faculty
Understanding cell signaling networks
The Batchelor lab combines computational and experimental approaches to understand the regulation and function of cell signaling pathways related to cancer development and progression. The group develops methods to manipulate cell signaling events to restore proper functions in pathological conditions.
Quantitative imaging of brain energy metabolism
Wei Chen’s lab has developed a variety of X-nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopic imaging methodologies and advanced radiofrequency coil technologies for noninvasively studying cellular metabolism, bioenergetics, function and dysfunction of the brain and other organs at ultrahigh field.
Quantitative virus and cancer imaging
Louis Mansky’s research group is addressing questions involving macromolecular assemblies important in virus and cancer pathobiology with quantitative fluorescence, electron imaging techniques, and large data informatics.
Peptide-guided drug delivery
Hongbo Pang's lab utilizes phage display to rapidly identify novel disease-seeking peptides. These peptides can function as "GPS" to navigate drugs more selectively to disease sites in vivo, thus improving the therapeutic efficacy and safety.
Cancer Bioengineering Initiative
The Cancer Bioengineering Initiative infuses engineering into cancer clinical trials so more trials lead to cancer treatments. Leaders include Biomedical Engineering faculty members David Odde, Paolo Provenzano, and David Wood.