Abstract
Tissue engineering is an interdisciplinary field that marries the principles of engineering and the life sciences toward the development of biological substitutes that can restore or improve tissue function. Typically, tissue engineers use advanced biomaterials that serve as scaffolds that provide cues and signals to cells to guide their re-growth or healing of a tissue. One of the products of tissue engineering, a temporary skin substitute, is already being used to treat patients with burns and diabetic ulcers. This talk will provide several examples to illustrate some of the complexities and challenges in engineering biomaterial scaffolds that can: 1) heal damaged cartilage, 2) help bones heal faster, 3) replace diseased heart valves, or 4) treat neurological disorders and injuries. Finally, all of this discussion will be placed in the context of the many scientific and regulatory challenges of these "living tissue" products and provide insight related to the future promise of this field in clinical medicine.
About the speaker
Prof Kristi Anseth received her PhD in Chemical Engineering from the University of Colorado at Boulder in 1994, where she is currently the Distinguished Professor, Tisone Professor of Chemical and Biological Engineering and Associate Professor of Surgery. She is also Professor, by courtesy, of Chemistry and Biochemistry and Molecular, Cellular and Developmental Biology there.
Prof Anseth’s research is at the frontier of biomaterials with high-impact clinical applications. She designs synthetic hydrogel biomaterials to imitate the extracellular matrix surrounding cells. Her pioneering approach is to apply photopolymerization and photodegradation to enable precise control in space and time over hydrogels' structure and composition, enabling fundamental investigations into the molecular dynamics of processes at the cell-biomaterial interface. Her lab is also interested in tissue engineering, using similar materials to develop replacement cartilage and heart valves.
Prof Anseth received numerous awards including the Alan T. Waterman Award from the US National Science Foundation, the Allan P. Colburn Award from the American Institute of Chemical Engineers (AIChE), and the Curtis W. McGraw Award from the American Society for Engineering Education, etc. She is a Member of the US National Academy of Sciences, US National Academy of Engineering and the Institute of Medicine of the National Academies. In 2008, Popular Science named her one of the “Brilliant Ten,” and AIChE named her among the “One Hundred Chemical Engineers of the Modern Era.”
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