ChE Seminar Series Presents: “Engineering the intestinal and retinal microenvironments”

ChE Seminar Series Presents:

Rebecca Carrier, Ph.D.

Professor & Associate Chair of Research, Department of Chemical Engineering

Affiliated Faculty, Bioengineering, Northeastern University, Boston, MA

“Engineering the intestinal and retinal microenvironments”

Abstract: The Advanced Drug Delivery Lab conducts research in regenerative medicine, with a focus on intestinal and retinal tissue engineering, and in oral drug delivery, with a focus on enabling effective oral delivery of therapeutics. In the area of enabling effective oral drug delivery, we have developed an experimental and theoretical framework to predict the impact of ingested lipids, in food or drug delivery systems, on oral drug absorption. This work could have a significant impact on societal health by providing practical, relevant guidance for the oral dosing of drugs and nutritive supplements. As part of our efforts in enabling effective oral treatments, we have explored the barrier properties of the gastrointestinal mucus barrier, and revealed changes in the mucus barrier certain disease states. The lab is now exploring how to alter mucus barrier properties to potentially prevent certain diseases, including necrotizing enterocolitis. In the area of intestinal tissue engineering, we are developing human in vitro models of the microbiome-gut-immune axis for understanding the impact of what we ingest and the microbiome on human health. We are also developing biomaterial cell carriers for cell-therapy based retinal regeneration strategies, with a focus on engineering cues into biomaterial carriers that will promote the survival and integration of implanted cells.

Biosketch: Rebecca Carrier is a Professor in the Department of Chemical Engineering at Northeastern. She earned a BS in Chemical Engineering from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in 1995, and a Ph.D. in Chemical Engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 2000, where she worked as a pioneer in cardiac muscle tissue engineering. After completing her graduate studies, Rebecca worked at Pfizer, Inc., as a Senior Research Scientist in oral controlled release drug delivery. She joined Northeastern in 2003, and the overall theme of her research interests is the interaction between biological systems and materials, with specific applications in drug delivery and regenerative medicine. She has worked with multiple industrial partners including Pfizer, Merck, and Boehringer Ingelheim, and has received honors including the NSF CAREER award, NU “Outstanding Teacher (2011),” “Faculty Fellow (2014),” and Soren Buus Outstanding Research (2017) Awards for excellence in teaching and research leadership. She was also invited to participate in the National Academy of Engineering Frontiers of Engineering (2016) and Frontiers of Engineering Education (2013) Symposia, served as the Member-At-Large for the Society for Biomaterials from 2018-2019, and was inducted into the American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering in 2019.

Please email Alyssa Ramsey at a.ramsey@northeastern.edu for the link to the seminar.