Our Biological and Pharmaceutical faculty apply the principles of engineering design, synthesis and analysis to biological systems and biomedical technologies. The department's research involves a multidisciplinary approach to solve problems at the interface of the physical sciences, life sciences, and engineering, particularly in the areas of biocatalysis, drug delivery, medical devices, and tissue engineering.
Researchers are working to develop safe delivery systems that target drugs precisely in the human body and avoid premature metabolization or elimination. New materials are being developed that can prevent or eliminate infections on medical implants, interact with the human body to perform certain functions while maintaining compatibility
Faculty
Jennifer Fiegel
Current research: Treatments for persistent bacterial infections in the lungs; new tools to evaluate biointeractions; aerosol interactions with lung fluids; dry powder and aerosol formulations to treat skin infections.
C. Allan Guymon
Current research: Photopolymerization with emphasis on role that polymerization reactions play on properties and structures of polymers. Projects involve lyotropic liquid crystals, polymerizable surfactants, and nanostructured materials based on lyotropic liquid crystals.
David Murhammer
Current research: Oxidative stress in baculovirus-infected insect cell culture, use of phage to control bacterial infections, and chemical process safety.
Eric Nuxoll
Current research: Thermal treatment of medical implant infections, pulsatile drug delivery, and interfacing devices with the bloodstream.
Aliasger Salem
Current research: The application of nanotechnology to enhancing cancer vaccine efficacy and to the development of scaffolds for regenerative medicine.
Edward Sander
Current research: Wound healing, mechanobiology, multiscale biomechanics and modeling.