Ambika Bajpayee
Associate Professor,
Bioengineering
Affiliated Faculty,
Chemical Engineering
Affiliated Faculty,
Global Resilience Institute
Contact
- a.bajpayee@northeastern.edu
- 360 Huntington Avenue
Boston, MA 02115
Office
- 216 ISEC
- 617.373.7018
Research Focus
Drug delivery; bio-electrostatics; transport phenomena in biological systems; biomechanics; osteoarthritis
About
Prof. Bajpayee works on drug delivery to connective and charged tissues such as cartilage, meniscus, intervertebral disc, and mucosal membranes. Her lab utilizes concepts of nanomedicine and bio-electrostatics to design polypeptides and protein-based carriers for targeted and sustained delivery of small molecule drugs, protein growth factors, antibodies, and genetic materials to specific intra-tissue and intra-cellular target sites inside connective tissues. A main focus is on using charge interactions and other binding mechanisms to rationally design drug carriers that can penetrate through the dense matrix of avascular, negatively charged tissues. Her lab is also interested in understanding mechanisms leading to degenerative joint diseases (e.g., osteoarthritis) due to aging and traumatic injuries. The group strives to combine basic science with translational research to develop biomedical technologies.
Education
- PhD, Mechanical Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 2015
- MEng, Mechanical Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 2007
- BS, Mechanical Engineering, University of Delhi, 2006
Honors & Awards
- 2025 Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers (PECASE)
- 2023 College of Engineering Faculty Fellow
- 2022 Søren Buus Outstanding Research Award
- 2021 National Science Foundation CAREER Award
- 2021 Biomaterials Science Emerging Investigator
- US Department of Defense Discovery Award
- 2019 NIH Trailblazer Award
- MIT Women of Excellence
- Meredith Kamm Memorial Award in Mechanical Engineering
Teaching Interests
- BIOE 2350, Biomechanics
- BIOE 5650, Multiscale Biomechanics
- BIOE5651, Fields, Forces and Flows
Professional Affiliations
- Osteoarthritis Research Society International (OARSI)
- Orthopaedic Research Society (ORS)
- Society for Biomaterials (SFB)
- Biomedical Engineering Society (BMES)
Research Overview
Drug delivery; bio-electrostatics; transport phenomena in biological systems; biomechanics; osteoarthritis
Molecular Bioelectrostatics & Drug Delivery Laboratory
The Bajpayee lab works on drug delivery to connective and charged tissues such as cartilage, meniscus, intervertebral disc and mucosal membranes. Connective tissues are pervasive throughout the body and their degeneration affects 10% of the human population. Their dense extracellular matrix, however, hinders penetration of most drugs. We utilize concepts of nanomedicine and bio-electrostatics to design polypeptides and protein-based carriers for targeted and sustained delivery of small molecule drugs, protein growth factors, antibodies and genetic materials to specific intra-tissue and intra-cellular target sites inside connective tissues.
Selected Research Projects
- Intra-Cartilage Depot Delivery of Electrically-Charged IL-1RA for Targeting Osteoarthritis-Associated Inflammation and Catabolism in Multiple Joint Tissues
- – Principal Investigator, NIH National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases
- Cationic Contrast Agents for Cartilage Imaging
- – Principal Investigator, NIH National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering
- Cartilage Targeting Exosomes for Delivery of Anti- Catabolic Drugs for Osteoarthritis Treatment
- – Principal Investigator, NIH Trailblazer
Department Research Areas
Selected Publications
- Warren, M.R., Zhang, C., Vedadghavami, A., Bokvist, K., Dhal, P.K., Bajpayee, A.G. (2021). Milk Exosomes with Enhanced Mucus Penetrability for Oral Delivery of siRNA. Biomaterials Science, 9, 4260-4277. 10.1039/D0BM01497D
- He, T., Li, B., Colombani, T., Joshi-Navare, K., Mehta, S., Kisiday, J., Bencherif, S., Bajpayee, A.G. (2021). Hyaluronic Acid-Based Shape-Memory Cryogel Scaffolds for Focal Cartilage Defect Repair. Tissue Engineering Part A, doi.org/10.1089/ten.tea.2020.0264
- Mehta, S., Young, C.C., Warren, M.R., Akhtar, S., Shefelbine, S.J., Crane, J.D., Bajpayee, A.G. (2021). Resveratrol and Curcumin Attenuate Ex Vivo Sugar-Induced Cartilage Glycation, Stiffening, Senescence and Degradation. Cartilage, doi.org/10.1177/1947603520988768
- Wagner, E.K., Vedadghavami, A., Jacobsen, T.D., Goel, S.A., Chahine, N.O., Bajpayee, A.G. (2020). Avidin Grafted Dextran Nanostructure Enables a Month-Long Intra-Discal Retention. Scientific Reports, 10, 12017.
- C. Young, A. Vedadghavami, A.G. Bajpayee, Bioelectricity For Drug Delivery: The Promise of Cationic Therapeutics, Bioelectricity, 2020
- T. He, C. Zhang, A. Vedadghavami, S. Mehta, H. Clark, R. Porter, A.G. Bajpayee, Multi-Arm Avidin Cationic Nano-Construct as a Cationic Carrier for Intra-Cartilage Delivery of Small Molecules, Journal of Controlled Release, 318, 2020, 109-123
- S. Mehta, S. Akhtar, R.M. Porter, P. Onnerfjord, A.G. Bajpayee, IL-1Ra Is More Effective in Suppressing Cytokine Induced Catabolism in Cartilage-Synovium Co-Culture Compared to Cartilage Monoculture, Arthritis Research and Therapy, 21, 2019, 238
- A. Vedadghavami, E.K. Wagner, S. Mehta, T. He, C. Zhang, A.G. Bajpayee, Cartilage Penetrating Cationic Peptide Carriers for Applications in Drug Delivery to Avascular Negatively Charged Tissues, Acta Biomaterialia, 93, 2018, 258-269
- A.G. Bajpayee, A.J. Grodzinsky, Cartilage Targeting Drug Delivery: Can Electrostatic Interactions Help?, Nature Rheumatology Reviews, 13, 2017, 183-193
Apr 02, 2025
Drug Delivery Using Cationic Exosomes To Treat Osteoarthritis
Tanvi Vinod Pathrikar, PhD’24, bioengineering, who worked in BioE Associate Professor Ambika Bajpayee’s lab, published “Cartilage-targeting Exosomes for Delivery of Receptor Antagonist of Interleukin-1 in Osteoarthritis treatment” in Osteoarthritis and Cartilage.
Feb 11, 2025
Ebong and Bajpayee Receive Prestigious PECASE Award
ChE/BioE Associate Professor Eno Ebong and BioE Associate Professor Ambika Bajpayee were awarded the Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers (PECASE), the highest honor bestowed by the federal government to outstanding early career scientists.
Jan 31, 2025
2024 Stanford University Annual Assessment of Author Citations
The following COE professors are among the top scientists worldwide selected by Stanford University representing the top 2% of the most-cited scientists with single-year impact in various disciplines. The selection is based on the top 100,000 by c-score (with and without self-citations) or a percentile rank of 2% or above. The list below includes those who published a paper in 2024 or later.
Jun 26, 2024
BioE PhD Student Earns Prestigious IBSA Foundation Doctoral Fellowship
Helna Mary Baby, a BioE PhD student, advised by BioE Associate Professor Ambika Bajpayee, is one of only six students worldwide to earn the prestigious IBSA Foundation for Scientific Research Doctoral Fellowship to continue her work on developing novel gene delivery system to treat osteoarthritis. Her project was selected from a group of 248 project entries from 47 countries.
Feb 01, 2024
Bajpayee’s Lab Research Featured on Cover of Biomaterials Science
Research conducted in BioE Associate Professor Ambika Bajpayee’s Molecular Bioelectrostatics and Drug Delivery Lab that focuses on oral delivery of gene therapeutics was featured on the front cover of Biomaterials Science. Students conducting the research are Chenzhen Zhang, PhD’23, and Hengli Zhang, PhD’25.
Dec 07, 2023
2023 Stanford University Annual Assessment of Author Citations
The following COE professors are among the top scientists worldwide selected by Stanford University representing the top 2% of the most-cited scientists with single-year impact in various disciplines. The selection is based on the top 100,000 by c-score (with and without self-citations) or a percentile rank of 2% or above.
Apr 12, 2023
Cationic Contrast Agents for Cartilage Imaging for Early Diagnosis of Arthritis
Ambika Bajpayee, associate professor, bioengineering, published a paper, “Cationic Carrier Mediated Delivery of Anionic Contrast Agents in Low Doses Enable Enhanced Computed Tomography Imaging of Cartilage for Early Osteoarthritis Diagnosis,” in the journal ACS Nano. The research details the creation of positively charged contrast agents that can target cartilage tissue in joints affected by osteoarthritis, enabling CT imaging at very low doses.
Aug 29, 2022
Bajpayee Awarded R21 Grant to Develop Therapies for Treating Lower Back Pain
BioE Associate Professor Ambika Bajpayee, in collaboration with Nadeen Chahine from Columbia University Health Sciences, was awarded a $222K R21 grant from the National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases for “Sustained Delivery of RhoA activator for Treatment of Intervertebral Disc Degeneration.”
Apr 15, 2022
Faculty and Staff Awards 2022
Congratulations to all the winners of the faculty and staff awards, and to everyone for their hard work and dedication during the 2021-2022 academic school year.
Dec 03, 2021
BioE’s Bajpayee Awarded NSF CAREER Grant for Drug Delivery Biomaterials
BioE Assistant Professor Ambika Bajpayee received a $630K NSF CAREER Award for “Developing electrically charged biomaterials for targeted drug delivery to negatively charged complex tissue environments.” Her research will investigate […]