Event
Bioengineering Seminar Series: Rick Gemeinhart
Friday, April 3, 2015
9:00 a.m.
Pepco Room (1105), Jeong H. Kim Engineering Building
Assistant Professor Steven Jay
smjay@umd.edu
Rick Gemeinhart
Departments of Biopharmaceutical Sciences and Bioengineering
University of Illinois-Chicago
Controlling Drug Delivery through Bio-Inspired Interactions
This presentation will explore our lab’s recent progress in exploiting biologic interactions to design drug delivery systems for biomacromolecules. Biologic molecules function through complex interactions that act to modulate the location and timing of action while also protecting the molecules from degradation. Using the idea of mimicking biologic interactions, we have examined polymers for the local delivery of molecules at all scales: nano to macro. This talk will first focus on the development and use of protein-cofactor interactions that allow the loading, protection, and stimuli-responsive release of protein therapeutics. Following these developments, the interaction of polymers with the immune system will be examined. The idea that drug delivery systems can elicit inflammatory and anti-inflammatory phenotypes from macrophages will be described. The talk will then focus on the use of peptide-RNA interactions for the delivery of anti-miRNA oligonucleotides. The talk will stress the theme of synthetic design following biologic inspiration and function.
About the Speaker
Professor Gemeinhart earned his Bachelor of Science in Engineering from Purdue University from the Department of Interdisciplinary Engineering in May of 1994. His focus was on biotechnology and engineering (biochemical, genetic, and biomedical); he culminated this research working in the Laboratory of Renewable Resource Engineering for class credit and as a laboratory technician.
He continued his academic career in the Department of Industrial and Physical Pharmacy at Purdue University. He joined the group of Kinam Park; his thesis work was on the use of a novel, highly porous hydrogel for oral drug delivery. He also conducted research on degradable polyesters, polyurethanes, protein-surface interactions, and surface analysis with atomic force microscopy.
After attaining his Ph.D., he joined W. Mark Saltzman in the School of Chemical Engineering at Cornell University. He conducted collaborative research with researchers in his group and in other departments, including Materials Science, Chemisty, and Veterinary Medicine. His research focused on ocular delivery using degradable microspheres, but also included hydrogels for bone initiation, microparticles for DNA transfection, and neural tissue engineering.
Dr. Gemeinhart was hired as an Assistant Professor Pharmaceutics and Bioengineering at The University of Illinois. He was named Director of Graduate Studies in the Department of Biopharmaceutical Sciences in August of 2005 a position he held until 2011. He was promoted to Associate Professor of Pharmaceutics and Bioengineering and Assistant Head for Graduate Programs in August of 2007. Following his return from writing sabbatical in January 2012, Dr. Gemeinhart was appointed Director of Graduate Education in the College of Pharmacy a position he held until August of 2014. In December of 2014, Dr. Gemeinhart was appointed UIC Research Integrity Officer.
Dr. Gemeinhart has been recognized for excellence in several aspects of his work. As a student, Dr. Gemeinhart was inducted into Rho Chi Pharmacy Honor Society and awarded a NIH Chemical Pharmacology Fellowship. Dr. Gemeinhart was also a Controlled Release Society Student Chapter President. Dr. Gemeinhart has continued to be interested in student organizations as advisor for the AAPS and CRS student chapters at UIC. For his research, Dr. Gemeinhart has been recognized as American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy, New Investigator (2002-2003), Society For Biomaterials Young Investigator (2006), and Hans W. Vahlteich Scholar (2006-2007). Dr. Gemeinhart has been on the Editorial Boards of several peer-reviewed journals: Th Open Organic Chemistry Journal (2007-2010), Recent Patents on Drug Delivery and Formulation (2009-current), Journal of Drug Delivery (2010-current), Journal of Pharmaceutics & Drug Delivery Research (2011-current). Dr. Gemeinhart has been funded by the National Institutes of Health, National Eye Institute and National Institute for Neurological Disorders and Stroke, The National Science Foundation, Directorate for Engineering, Chemical, Bioengineering, Environmentla, and Transport Systems (CBET) section, Department of Defense, Milheim Foundation. American Brain Tumor Association, and Rockefeller Brothers Fund, Charles E. Culpepper Pilot Initiative. Dr. Gemeinhart has also been an active review of UIC, local, national and international research grants, and Dr. Gemeinhart is now permanent member of the Bioengineering, Technology and Surgical Sciences (BTSS) Study Section of the NIH.
