Biomaterials: Biomaterials has played a pivotal role in advancements of biomedical field ranging from medical devices to regenerative medicine. In our lab, we are interested in designing novel biomaterials for the following biomedical applications: (i) artificial implants and medical devices - biopolymers with structural properties similar to native tissue to regain the functionality of the damaged tissue; (ii) cellular therapy - biopolymers with tissue-specific biochemical and biophysical cues as an artificial cellular niche to regulate stem cell fate and commitment, engineering three dimensional organs, and in vivo delivery of cell and tissue into the host; and (iii) acellular therapy - biopolymers as a temporary substitute for guided self-regeneration utilizing the self-regenerating ability of the host tissue.

Stem cells: Stem cells have been touted to play an important role in treating debilitating diseases and tissue damages. To make stem cell based therapies a clinical reality, it is essential to control their proliferation and differentiation into specific cellular phenotypes. It is believed that the fate and commitment of stem cells are largely determined by their microenvironment through their interaction with the surrounding matrix, neighboring cells, and soluble cytokines. The cascade of complex signals that regulate spatiotemporal differentiation and proliferation of stem cells are largely unknown. Our laboratory is interested in understanding the cellular signaling pathways that play a crucial role in stem cells fate and commitment, and harnessing them using biopolymers to engineer functionally viable tissues for regenerative medicine