NOTE: This seminar will be presented virtually rather than in-person. Students registered for the class are still expected to attend in person in MJIS 1001.
Weldon School of Biomedical Engineering
Wednesday, March 23, 2022
9:30-10:20am
MJIS 1001 or Via Zoom:
https://purdue-edu.zoom.us/j/95150439811?pwd=a3hOK0o0bmpkS3poTVBCbVhDNU9FZz09
This seminar will be presented virtually.
Engineering approaches to analyze tumor-associated ECM dynamics
Claudia Fischbach-Teschl, Ph.D.
Stanley Bryer 1946 Professor of Biomedical Engineering
Cornell University
Abstract: Microenvironmental conditions contribute to the pathogenesis of cancer and include altered cellular composition, extracellular matrix (ECM) deposition, and mechanical cues. However, our understanding
of the specific mechanisms by which these microenvironmental perturbations impact the development, progression, and therapy response of cancer is relatively limited. More intricate models are needed to better understand the complex biochemical and biophysical
interactions that drive tumor initiation, growth, metastasis, metabolic adaptation, and immune evasion. The fields of biomaterials and tissue engineering provide increasingly sophisticated tools and strategies to recapitulate and monitor relevant properties
of tumor-microenvironment interactions. These approaches not only bear tremendous potential to advance our current understanding of cancer, but are also increasingly explored for more clinically relevant drug testing. Indeed, combining patient-specific cells
with engineered culture systems promises to enhance the predictive power of precision medicine pipelines. This talk will highlight specific examples of how the microenvironment regulates the highly dynamic nature of cancer and will outline opportunities and
challenges of the field of tumor engineering.
Bio: Claudia Fischbach-Teschl is the Stanley Bryer 1946 Professor of Biomedical Engineering at
Cornell University, Director of Cornell’s Physical Sciences Oncology Center (PSOC) on the Physics of Cancer Metabolism, and Associate Director of Cornell Nanoscale Science and Engineering Facility (CNF). She received her Ph.D. in
Pharmaceutical Technology from the University of Regensburg, Germany and conducted her postdoctoral work at Harvard University in the Division of Engineering and Applied Sciences. She became a faculty member at Cornell in 2007 where she utilizes engineering
tools and strategies to gain a better understanding of how tumor-microenvironment interactions regulate cancer development, progression, and therapy resistance with a focus on cell-ECM interactions. She is a fellow of the American Institute for Medical and
Biological Engineering (AIMBE), the Biomedical Engineering Society, and the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation in Germany. She served on the Tumor Microenvironment study section, is a Senior Editor of Cancer Research and serves on the Editorial Board of the
ACS journal Biomaterials Science and Engineering and Tissue Engineering. She is an advocate for interdisciplinary cancer research (e.g. as Chair of the 2019 Gordon Conference on the ‘Physical Science of Cancer’) and has written Op-Ed articles on this topic
including in Scientific American.
~BME Faculty Host: Dr. Luis Solorio
~