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Diversity = Strength
Forging relationships to break (scientific) boundaries
My research is at the interface of biomolecular engineering, materials science, and synthetic peptide chemistry.
I am an Associate Professor of Biomedical Engineering, Chemical and Materials Engineering, Biology (at NJIT) and Endodontics (RSDM).
We explore self-assembling peptide hydrogels for a milieu of therapeutic avenues. My experience in this platform extends from drug delivery, peptide chemistry and materials development with a focus on translation.
Some of my research activities include over 60 publications, 80 conference abstracts and over a dozen patents/ disclosures. I have mentored 8 post-docs (2 current), 7 graduate students (5 PhD current) and over 70 (10 current) undergraduates.
Our collaborative strengths are a result of complementary domain expertise in peptide synthesis, computational molecular design, injectable peptide-based biomaterials, drug delivery, complementary animal models and translation. I am the founder of startups which have attempted the translation of technologies in preclinical efficacy models prior to Phase I human studies.
I am well connected to the start-up community, pharmaceutical industry, and, most importantly, have experience translating therapeutics from ideation to IND enabling studies.
Project: Computational & molecular engineering in disease & tissue regeneration
PhD: Monash University, Biotechnology
MS: Monash University, Reproductive Biology
BS: Monash University, Physiology
Project: Surgical models, dental pulp regeneration, antimicrobial peptides
PhD: Rowan University, BME
MS: New Jersey Institute of Technology, BME
BS: New Jersey Institute of Technology, BME
Major:Biomedical Engineering, PhD
Project: In vivo modeling and evaluation of angiogenic and myogenic scaffolds
DVM: Shahrekord University
Major:Biomedical Engineering, PhD
Project: Synthetic peptide design for angiogenesis and inflammation modulation.
BS: Penn State, BME
Major: Biomedical Engineering, PhD
Project: Dental application of self-assembling peptides.
BS: New Jersey Institute of Technology, BME
Major: Biomedical Engineering, PhD
Project: In vitro localization and signaling potential of self-assembling peptides.
BS: Duke University, Biology
Major:Biomedical Engineering, PhD
Project: Design of vascularized tissue engineered scaffolds
BS: L. D. College of Engineering, India
Summary of Previous / Current scholars:
Post-Doctoral Fellows:
1. Corey Heffernan, PhD, Immunomodulating self-assembling peptides, NJIT, 2023-present
2. Laura Osorno, PhD, Periodontal and pulp regeneration, NJIT, 2023-present
3. Richa Mishra, PhD, Drug screening and peptide design, NJIT, 2022-2023
4. Jatin Kashyap, PhD, Computation peptide and drug design, NJIT, 2022-2023 @ Innovision, LLC
5. Peter Nguyen Ph.D., Self-assembling peptides for tissue engineering, NJIT, 2016-2019, @ Regeneron
6. Biplab Sarkar, Ph.D., Drug delivery and smart polymers, NJIT, 2017-2020, @ Cactus Communications
7. Stephen Rodgers, Ph.D., Becton Dickinson, 2017-2018
8. Maria Nikmanesh, Ph.D., Cytocompatibility analysis of MDP, 2018 summer
9. Amanda Acevedo-Jake, Ph.D., Understanding self-assembly and its impact on ocular disease, 2020-2022
Graduate Fellows:
1. Bobak Shadpoor, MS, In vitro mechanistic study of SAP-GF mimics, NJIT, 2023-present
2. Gelavizh Gerati, DVM, In vivo evaluation of SAPs, towards PhD, NJIT, 2022-present
3. Joseph Dodd-o, BS, Computational angiogenic peptide design, towards PhD, NJIT, 2021-present
4. Alexandra Griffith, BS, Dental pulp regeneration, towards PhD, NJIT, 2021-present
5. Abhishek Roy, BS, Determining the in vivo tracking of peptides, towards PhD, 2020-present
6. Zain Siddiqui, MS, Caging functional domains on peptide, towards PhD, NJIT, 2019-2023 currently a post-doc at UPenn
7. Victoria Harbour, MS, NSF GRFP, Cholesterol Lowering peptides, MS, NJIT, 2019-2020, currently at Stanford Medical School.
8. Kaytlyn Crowe, MS, NSF I-Corps funded, Advanced medical devices for oral healthcare, MS, NJIT, 2020-2021
9. Ka-Kyung Kim, MA, Tuning inflammatory phenotypes, towards PhD, NJIT, 2018-2022, currently a post-doc at SUNY Buffalo
Undergraduates at NJIT:
1. Akhil Dondapati, Engineered scaffolds for neural regeneration, BS-MD, NJIT, current a medical students at NJMS, 2016-2017
2. Henry Cabral, Hydrogel-based HIV vasccines, BS-MS, NJIT, 2016-2017
3. Karen Mandarina, Hemostats and anti-coagulant peptides, BS, NJIT, 2016-2018
4. William Gao, Dental pulp tissue engineering, BS-DDS, NJIT, 2016-2019
5. Anthony Chiryath, Hydrogel stem cell carriers, BS-MD, NJIT, 2016- 2018
6. Rohit Premkumar, Tissue engineered vascular grafts, NSF i-Corps entrepreneurial lead, NJIT, 2016- 2019
7. Sruti Rachapudi, Ocular drug delivery for diabetic retinopathy, BS-MD, NSF i-Corps entrepreneurial lead, NJIT, 2016- 2019
8. Sheryl Jacob, Engineering and delivery stem cell derived islets for diabetes, BS-MD, NJIT, 2016- 2018
9. Patricia Iglesias, Immunotherapeutics for treatment of cancers, BS, NJIT, 2016- 2019
10. Ghiday Lamptey, Beta sheets to treat Alzheimer’s, BS NJIT, 2017-2018
11. Aloisio Campanha, Non-invasive tissue regeneration, BS, 2017-2018
12. Jasper Davey, Pullup App, BS, NJIT, 2017-2018
13. Ankur Raval, Pullup App, BS, NJIT, 2017
14. Chad Charles, Pullup App, BS, NJIT, 2017
15. Christopher Magesty, Pullup App, BS, NJIT, 2017-2019
16. Vinicius Frigatti, Pullup App, BS, NJIT, 2017-2019
17. Victoria Harbour, PCSK-9 mimics for cholesterol mitigation, BS, NJIT, 2017-2019
18. Shivani Jaisinghani, Antibacterial peptides, BS, NJIT, 2017-2019
19. Saloni Patel, Dental pulp tissue engineering, BS, NJIT, 2017-2019
20. Ashley Fitzsimmons, Rapid STD screen, BS, NJIT, 2017-2018
21. Bernadette Huynh, Rapid STD screen, BS, NJIT, 2017-2018
22. Sadie Gann, Rapid STD screen, BS, NJIT, 2017-2018
23. Allesandro Howells, Rapid STD screen, BS, NJIT, 2017-2018
24. Salam Hashmi, Alzheimer’s binding of peptides, 2017-2018
25. Ines Vujkovac, Computational modelling of peptide binding, 2017-2018
26. Harsh Vyas, Optimizing ELISA for PCSK-9 binding, BS, NJIT, 2018-2019
27. Ruhi Naik, Drug release from peptide hydrogels, BS, NJIT, 2018-2019
28. Kayla Mitchell, Optimizing small molecule release from hydrogels, BS, NJIT, 2018-2019
29. Ayesha Ali, Salivary calcification of MDP for neo-cementum regeneration, BS, NJIT, 2017-2019
30. Natalie Kozan, Rheometric analysis of peptide hydrogels, NJIT, 2018-2019
31. Arjun Kumar, Optimizing decellularization of blood vessels, BS, NJIT, 2018-2021
32. Manali Patel, Culture and polarization of THP-1 leukocytes, BS, NJIT, 2018-2020
33. Xavier Reyers, Modelling in Blender, BS, NJIT, 2018-2019
34. Anna Mathew, Optimization of peptide synthesis, BS-MD, NJIT, 2018-2021
35. Sreya Sanyal, Cholesterol metabolism, BS, NJIT, 2018-2021
36. Waleed Mujib, Evaluating cellular infiltration of implants, NJIT, 2018-2019
37. Reshma Paul, Evaluation of anti-microbial effect of peptide, BS, NJIT, 2018-2020
38. Julia DeLorenzo, Stablization of vaccines, BS, NJIT, 2019-present
39. Akash Dontamsetty, Purification of molecular drug, BS, NJIT, 2019
40. Shareef Syed, Stability of peptide conjugates, BS, NJIT, 2019-2021
41. Nurten Kadincesme, Pulp regeneration in rats, BS, NJIT, 2019-2022
42. Kamiya Patel, Developing SAPH vaporizable materials, BS, NJIT, 2019-2022
43. Jeena Kataria, Optimizing small molecule oral delivery of thixotropic polymers, BS, NJIT, 2019-2022
44. Aryan Mahajan, Angiogenesis in Zebrafish, BS, NJIT, 2019-2022
45. Disha Panchal, Delivery of RNA from hydrogels, BS, NJIT, 2019-2022
46. Ramita Sajankila, Transintestinal cholesterol efflux, BS, NJIT, 2020-2022
47. Varun Pai, Small molecule COVID therapeutics, BS, NJIT, 2020-2022
48. Dana Hindi, Gels for wound healing, BS, NJIT, 2020-2022
49. Lucian Mahadeo, Molecular design of drugs, BS, NJIT, 2020-2022
50. Tanisha Shah, In vivo implant quantitation, BS, NJIT 2021-2022
51. Paolo Elguera, Intracellular CRISPR, BS, NJIT, 2019-present
52. Abdul Azizogli, Drugs to treat COVID, BS, NJIT, 2020-present
53. Oliver Gu, Studying the VEGF-QK axis, BS, NJIT, 2020-present
54. Shahitya Kulkurni, SAPH wound healing peptides, BS, NJIT, 2021-present
55. Abdul-Lateef Fnu, Machine learning for discovery of angiogenic peptides, BS, NJIT, 2021-present
56. Tanisha Shah, Imaging of in vivo implants, BS, NJIT, 2022-present
57. Siya Patel, Characterization of pro-apoptotic hydrogels, BS, NJIT, 2022-present
58. Arslan Hashmi, IGF mimicking peptides for fracture and muscle healing, BS, NJIT, 2022-present
59. Aisha Khan, Miniaturized peptide synthesizer, BS, NJIT, 2022-present
60. Anne Hoang, Apoptotic peptide, NSF-URI, BS, Rowan University, BS, 2022 summer
61. Francis Kanwanya-Nwajueboe, Protein signaling evaluation, BS, NJIT, 2022-present