Professor Paula Hammond

Professor Paula T. Hammond
Institute Professor & Vice Provost for Faculty
Department of Chemical Engineering & Koch Institute of Integrative Cancer Research
Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Polypeptide electrostatic assemblies drive cancer immunotherapies

Electrostatic layer-by-layer assembly can be used to modify the surfaces of nanoparticles, leading to profound differences in the association of the nanoparticles to cells and their subsequent intracellular trafficking. What is particularly novel about the use of a layered polyelectrolyte assembly as a nanoparticle system is the unique adsorbed chain conformations that such assemblies present to cells, and the ability of the layers to rearrange under different physiological conditions. We have developed simple electrostatic bilayer coatings that lead to high affinity to cancer cells while maintaining sufficiently low interactions with healthy cells to enable highly efficient tumor targeting. Recently, we have examined and identified the nature of the interactions driving these unique tumor associations, and leveraged them to present cytokines within the tumor environment to upregulate the immune response against cancer. Importantly, the molecular weight of the polyelectrolytes utilized makes a significant difference in the affinity and persistence of these interactions. Electrostatic assembly conditions that regulate shielding of polyelectrolyte chains also greatly influence the presentation of the cytokine cargo. Overall we find that we can significantly enhance cytokine delivery and presentation and generate treatments that effectively eradicate tumors in aggressive tumor models, while retaining immune memory against cancerous cells.

Paula T. Hammond

Professor Paula T. Hammond is Institute Professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and a member of MIT’s Koch Institute for Integrative Cancer Research. She is the Vice Provost for Faculty at MIT as of January 2024. She served as the Head of the Chemical Engineering Department at MIT from 2015 to 2023.

The core of Prof. Hammond’s work is the use of electrostatics and other complementary interactions to generate functional materials with highly controlled architecture. Her research in nanomedicine encompasses the development of new biomaterials to enable drug delivery from surfaces with spatio-temporal control. She also investigates novel responsive polymer architectures for targeted nanoparticle drug and gene delivery. The newest developments from her lab offer a promising approach to the delivery of proteins, siRNA and mRNA using electrostatic assembly as a means of modifying surfaces, nanoparticles and lipid complexes for targeted systemic delivery, opening potential for vaccines and immunotherapies. Professor Paula Hammond was elected into the National Academy of Science in 2019, the National Academy of Engineering in 2017, the National Academy of Medicine in 2016, and the 2013 Class of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. She is also a member of the National Academy of Inventors (2021). She received the American Institute of Chemical Engineers (AIChE) Margaret H. Rousseau Pioneer Award for Lifetime Achievement by a Woman Chemical Engineer in 2019 and gave the Materials Research Society (MRS) David Turnbull Lectureship, 2019. Professor Hammond has published over 330 papers, and over 20 patent applications. She is the co- founder and member of the Scientific Advisory Board of LayerBio, Inc., a member of the Scientific Advisory Board of Moderna Therapeutics and a member of the Board of Alector Therapeutics and the Board of Sail Biomedicines, a Flagship company. In 2021, Professor Hammond was selected to become a member of the President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology (PCAST). In January 2025, President Biden awarded Professor Hammond the honorable National Medal of Technology and Innovation.

In terms of educational background, Prof. Hammond is from Detroit, Michigan, and received her B.S. in Chemical Engineering from MIT, then worked for two years in industry, moved to Atlanta to get an M.S. in Chemical Engineering at Georgia Tech, before returning to MIT for her PhD. She held the Ford Foundation Dissertation Fellowship, and on completing her PhD, was an NSF Postdoctoral Fellow at the Harvard University Chemistry Department before returning to MIT as a faculty member.

Hosted by Professor Theresa Reineke