Faculty Researchers
Biotechnology harnesses cellular and biomolecular processes to develop products that help improve our lives and the health of our planet. This includes activities such as genetic engineering as well as cell and tissue culture technologies. Biotechnology is providing breakthrough products to combat debilitating and rare diseases, reduce our environmental footprint, feed the hungry, provide cleaner energy as well as green and sustainable manufacturing processes. Biotech uses processes such as fermentation and biocatalysts such as enzymes and microbes. It is often broken down into three categories: i) health care, ii) agricultural, and ii) industrial. For example, health care biotechnology involves development of biopharmaceuticals whereas industrial biotech focuses on production of commodity chemicals, such as polymers, ethanol, biodiesel, and basic feedstocks. Polymer Biomaterials are derived either from nature or synthesized in the laboratory using a variety of chemical approaches. They may be inert or used to induce a physiological response supportive of the biomaterial's function. Examples of biomaterial applications are scaffolds for cell growth (tissue engineering), protect and regenerate infected or burned skin, support bone function during healing, as lubricants in arthritic knee joints and for drug delivery. Important considerations in biomaterial design may be to control their lifetime (e.g. where bioresorption/biodegradation is desired) and to match the physical properties of natural tissues. Researcher in the Chemistry and Chemical Biology Department along with their collaborators are: discovering degradation-resistant proteins that are advantaged for applications in biocatalysis and human health; synthesis and modification of glycosaminoglycans via chemo-enzymatic methods; elucidating the biological functions of carbohydrates critical to physiological and pathophysiological processes; microbial synthesis and chemo-enzymatic modification of glycolipids as therapeutics to treat cancer, affect immunomodulation and eliminate pathogens; design and synthesis of functional DNA/RNA aptamers, nanostructures and nanodevices; bioresorbable matrices for tissue engineering; Engineering bacterial cellulose morphology for use as matrices for tissue engineering, electro-optical materials and separation science.
