Therapeutic Bioengineering

Bioengineering has a major role in developing new probes for tissue targeting, designing sensors of biological activity to evaluate normal and abnormal physiology, fabricating tissue replacements and drug delivery devices, and computational modeling of disease processes. Our scientists seek to advance therapeutics by engineering novel materials and devices at the cellular and subcellular levels. Such technologies might ultimately be used to treat cancer, neurodegenerative diseases, diabetes, and blood/immune disorders. Faculty in this field are interested in:

• Mechanisms for delivering novel drug and gene therapies that take advantage of specific biological and biochemical properties of the disease with minimal impact upon surrounding normal tissue
• Developing biocompatible and biological materials as part of functional implant systems for tissue replacement, including the use of stem cells and gene therapy
• Determining the fundamental principles by which cells and extracellular matrix respond to physical loading and how mechanical factors influence tissue development, injury, repair, and remodeling
• Developing new probes for tissue characterization, diagnosis, and evaluation of response to therapy using methodologies such as genomics and proteomics
• Designing novel instrumentation and computer-aided simulations for optimizing invasive procedures such as robotic surgery, intra-operative monitoring, and delivering focal therapy.

	Tejal Desai, PhD Professor
	Sarah Nelson, Dr.rer.nat. Professor and Co-chair
	Shuvo Roy, PhD Associate Professor
	Francis Szoka, PhD Professor Joint appointment: Pharmaceutical Chemistry, School of Pharmacy

Name	Title	Joint Appointments
Tejal Desai, PhD	Professor				X		X
Sarah Nelson, Dr.rer.nat.	Professor and Co-chair				X
Shuvo Roy, PhD	Associate Professor				X
Francis Szoka, PhD	Professor	Pharmaceutical Chemistry, School of Pharmacy			X		X

Image credit: all images © majedphoto.com except orange-tinted miniature device: Shuvo Roy. Some faculty member photos: UCSF School of Pharmacy faculty members.