Bioengineering Seminar Series: April Kloxin

Friday, February 12, 2016
9:00 a.m.-10:00 a.m.
Pepco Room (1105), Jeong H. Kim Engineering Building
Dr. Christopher Jewell
cmjewell@umd.edu

Dr. April Kloxin
Assistant Professor
Departments of Chemical & Biomolecular Engineering, Materials Science and Engineering, Biomedical Engineering (affiliate)
University of Delaware

Designing responsive biomaterials for controlling the cell environment

The nano- to macro-scale physical and chemical properties of the environment that surrounds a cell are known to play an important role in cell function and fate. Yet, less is known about how combinations of and changes in these properties influence biological functions.  For example, driven by transient bidirectional crosstalk between cells and the extracellular matrix (ECM), cell activation and tissue remodeling are complex processes that often involve the presentation of multiple cues that are tightly regulated over multiple time and size scales.  Studying such dynamic processes in vitro can be challenging.  Biomaterials, particularly hydrogels, are useful tools for probing how microenvironment cues regulate cell behavior toward directing cellular functions in the treatment of disease and regeneration of tissue.  Further, these materials can be utilized to deliver therapeutics, from proteins to cells, to regulate these processes in vivo.  Engineering hydrogel-based materials from the bottom up enables controlled presentation of selected cues at the appropriate time and place within the cellular niche.  This talk will focus on simple strategies to impart highly-regulated property control by synthesizing monomers capable of forming hydrogels in the presence of cells and subsequently allowing triggered modification (e.g., light, enzymes, or reducing conditions) to tune the physical or chemical properties of the network. In particular, we will highlight recent results toward understanding the critical cues that direct stem cell fate and responsive and tunable strategies to deliver therapeutics, from proteins to stem cells.


About the Speaker

April M. Kloxin, Ph.D., is an Assistant Professor in Chemical & Biomolecular Engineering, Materials Science & Engineering, and Biomedical Engineering (affiliate) at the University of Delaware (UD).  She obtained her B.S. (Summa Cum Laude) and M.S. in Chemical Engineering from North Carolina State University and Ph.D. in Chemical Engineering from the University of Colorado, Boulder, as a NASA Graduate Student Research Program Fellow.  She trained as a Howard Hughes Medical Institute postdoctoral research associate at the University of Colorado before joining the faculty at UD in 2011. Her research group focuses on the design of responsive biomaterials and development of controlled, dynamic models of disease and regeneration.  Her honors include a NSF CAREER award, a Pew Scholars in Biomedical Sciences award, the Western Association of Graduate Schools Innovation in Technology Award, the Max S. Peters Outstanding Graduate Research Award, and the
ACS Polymer Chemistry Division Excellence in Graduate Polymer Research Award.

 

 

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