Cellular and Biomolecular Engineering

The fields of cellular engineering and biomolecular engineering involve the integration of chemical, physical, and biological sciences with engineering approaches to study and manipulate biological systems at the cellular and molecular levels, respectively.  Fundamental research thrusts within cellular engineering include cellular mechanics, cell-cell and cell-matrix interactions, cell signaling, receptor-mediated phenomena, and systems biology of cellular decision processes.  Research areas within biomolecular engineering include rational design of biomolecules, high-throughput screening of biomolecules, synthetic biology, evolution and selection of biomolecules from large libraries, and analysis of biomolecular functions and rate processes in physiological settings.  Research tools for addressing problems in cellular and biomolecular engineering include a wide variety of experimental approaches as well as the development of theoretical and computational models.  Specific examples of research application areas for these fields within our department include: stem cell differentiation, drug delivery, drug discovery, gene therapy, cell adhesion and motility, viral infection, cell signaling in cancer and efficacy of targeted cancer therapeutics, blood coagulation and thrombolysis, and DNA repair.