Rebecca L. Carrier
COE Distinguished Professor & Associate Chair for Research and Faculty Affairs,
Chemical Engineering
Affiliated Faculty,
Bioengineering
Affiliated Faculty,
Biology
Contact
- r.carrier@northeastern.edu
- 335 ISEC
360 Huntington Ave
Boston, Massachusetts 02115
Social Media
Office
- 227 ISEC
- 617.373.7126
Lab
- 277 ISEC
- 617.373.5607
Research Focus
Intestinal tissue engineering, retinal regenerative medicine, oral drug delivery
About
Joined the Chemical Engineering Department in Fall 2003.
The overall theme of my research interests is the interaction between biological systems and materials, with specific applications in drug delivery and regenerative medicine. The two main goals of my research program are: 1. To enhance understanding of compound transport in biological systems, (e.g., drug transport through the body), and how it is influenced by exogenous and endogenous carrier systems (e.g., lipid micelles) and 2. To develop and study biomimetic biomaterials and cellular response to them. Quantitative, mechanistic understanding of compound transport in the body will enable rational design of drug delivery systems, streamlining the resource-intensive drug development process and enabling viable pharmaceutical products to be developed from promising drug candidates. It could also enhance understanding of physiological function (e.g., significance of biological barriers such as gastrointestinal mucus in normal and disease states). Precisely biomimetic biomaterials could enable meaningful cell culture models for research and scaffolds promoting tissue regeneration when combined with appropriate cells. Current specific research focus areas include the impact of lipids on oral compound absorption, mechanistic studies of mucus barriers to drug and drug carrier transport, and development of biomimetic biomaterials for intestinal and retinal tissue engineering.
Education
- PhD (Chemical Engineering) Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 2000
- BS Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, 1995
Honors & Awards
- 2024 Fellow, Controlled Release Society
- 2024 Distinguished Faculty Award
- 2018 American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering Fellow
- 2018-2019 Society for Biomaterials Member-At-Large
- 2017 Søren Buus Outstanding Research Award
- 2016 NAE Frontiers of Engineering Symposium
- 2014 COE Faculty Fellow
- 2013 NAE Frontiers of Engineering Education Symposium
- 2008 NSF CAREER Award
Professional Affiliations
- Biology
Research Overview
Intestinal tissue engineering, retinal regenerative medicine, oral drug delivery
Selected Research Projects
- Engineered Probiotics for Closed-Loop Control of Disease-Associated Gut Metabolites in Gut-On-Chip Models
- – co-Principal Investigator, National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering
- Impact of Lipids and Food on Oral Compound Absorption: Mechanistic Studies and Modeling
- Principal Investigator, National Institutes of Health
- GuMI: New In Vitro Platforms to Parse the Human Gut Epithelial-Microbiome-Immune Axis
- Principal Investigator, National Institutes of Health
Department Research Areas
Selected Publications
- Chen, Wen Li Kelly, Suter, Emily, Miyazaki, Hikaru, Velazquez, Jason, Lauffenburger, Douglas A., Griffith, Linda G., Carrier, Rebecca L. (2021). Synergistic Action of Diclofenac with Endotoxin-Mediated Inflammation Exacerbates Intestinal Injury in Vitro. ACS Infectious Diseases, 7(4),838-848. 10.1021/ACSINFECDIS.0C00762
- Zhang, Jianbo, Huang, Yu-Ja, Yoon, Jun Young, Kemmitt, John, Wright, Charles, Schneider, Kirsten, Sphabmixay, Pierre, Hernandez-Gordillo, Victor, Holcomb, Steven J., Bhushan, Brij, Rohatgi, Gar, Benton, Kyle, Carpenter, David, Kester, Jemila C., Eng, George, Breault, David T., Yilmaz, Omer, Taketani, Mao, Voigt, Christopher A., Carrier, Rebecca L., Trumper, David L., Griffith, Linda G. (2021). Primary Human Colonic Mucosal Barrier Crosstalk with Super Oxygen-Sensitive Faecalibacterium prausnitzii in Continuous Culture. Med, 2(1),74-98.e9. 10.1016/J.MEDJ.2020.07.001
- Hernandez-Gordillo, Victor, Kassis, Timothy, Lampejo, Arinola, Choi, GiHun, Gamboa, Mario E., Gnecco, Juan S., Brown, Alexander, Breault, David T., Carrier, Rebecca, Griffith, Linda G. (2020). Fully synthetic matrices for in vitro culture of primary human intestinal enteroids and endometrial organoids. Biomaterials, 254,120125. 10.1016/J.BIOMATERIALS.2020.120125
- Lock, Jaclyn Y., Carlson, Taylor L., Yu, Yueyue, Lu, Jing, Claud, Erika C., Carrier, Rebecca L. (2020). Impact of Developmental Age, Necrotizing Enterocolitis Associated Stress, and Oral Therapeutic Intervention on Mucus Barrier Properties. Scientific Reports, 10(1). 10.1038/S41598-020-63593-5
- Snyder, Jessica, Wang, Chia-Ming, Zhang, An Qi, Li, Yuan, Luchan, Joshua, Hosic, Sanjin, Koppes, Ryan, Carrier, Rebecca Lyn, Koppes, Abigail (2020). Materials and Microenvironments for Engineering the Intestinal Epithelium. Annals of Biomedical Engineering, 48(7),1916-1940. 10.1007/S10439-020-02470-8
- Kim, So Young, Kundu, Joydip, Williams, Asher, Yandulskaya, Anastasia S., Monaghan, James R., Carrier, Rebecca L., Linhardt, Robert J. (2019). Glycosaminoglycans compositional analysis of Urodele axolotl (Ambystoma mexicanum) and Porcine Retina. Glycoconjugate Journal, 36(2),165-174. 10.1007/S10719-019-09863-5
- J. Kundu, A. Michaelson, P. Baranov, M. Chiumiento, T. Nigl, M.J. Young, R.L. Carrier, Interphotoreceptor Matrix Based Biomaterial: Impact on Human Retinal Progenitor Cell Attachment and Differentiation, Journal of Biomedical Materials Research B Applied Biomaterials, 106(2), 2018, 891-899
- J.Y. Lock, T.L. Carlson, C.M. Wang, A. Chen, R.L. Carrier, Acute Exposure to Commonly Ingested Emulsifiers Alters Intestinal Mucus Structure and Transport Properties, Scientific Reports, 8(1), 2018, 10008
- T.L. Carlson J.Y. Lock R.L. Carrier, Engineering the Mucus Barrier, Annual Reviews in Biomedical Engineering, 20, 2018, 197-220
- R.L. Carrier, M. Cirit, L.G. Griffith, D.A. Lauffenburger, et al., Integrated Gut/Liver Microphysiological Systems Elucidates Inflammatory Inter-Tissue Crosstalk, Biotechnology and Bioengineering, 114(11), 2017, 2648-2659
- A.N. Koppes, M. Kamath, C.A. Pfluger, D.D. Burkey, M. Dokmeci, L. Wang, R.L. Carrier, Complex, Multi-Scale Small Intestinal Topography Replicated in Cellular Growth Substrates Fabricated via Chemical Vapor Deposition of Parylene C, Biofabrication, 8(3), 2016, 035011O

Oct 17, 2024
Engineering for Women’s Health Conference 2024 Focuses on Interdisciplinary Solutions
Seeking to highlight the need for interdisciplinary and collaborative approaches to women’s health, a group of bioengineering and mechanical engineering PhD students organized the inaugural Engineering for Women’s Health Conference 2024.

Sep 27, 2024
Researching Mucus To Understand Drug Delivery Effectiveness
At the 2024 Society for Biomaterials Northeast Symposium, ChE Distinguished Professor Rebecca Carrier explained how her research examines mucus through multiple particle tracking to understand what drug delivery systems can permeate the mucosal barrier.

Aug 01, 2024
Carrier Selected as Fellow of the Controlled Release Society
ChE Distinguished Professor Rebecca Carrier was elevated to the College of Fellows of the Controlled Release Society. The CRS recognizes exceptional individuals who have made significant contributions to the field of delivery science and technology.

Jun 13, 2024
Prebiotics in Food Are More Certain Source of Health Benefits Than Prebiotic Sodas
While the health benefits of prebiotics in soda are debated, ChE Professor Rebecca Carrier recommends relying on the definitive evidence that food with prebiotics promote a healthy gut and can have overall health benefits.

Jun 03, 2024
Investigating the Link Between Gut Health and Mental Health
ChE Professor Rebecca Carrier explains the current knowns and unknowns of the connection between gut and mental health. While the two have been proven to have a clear link, the underlying mechanisms that cause these connections are still being researched.

Feb 22, 2024
Research Partnership Between Northeastern and University College Dublin Flourishes
Northeastern has expanded its longstanding undergraduate partnership with University College Dublin of Ireland to include research and doctoral education. As part of the collaboration, the universities will jointly fund five new joint research projects that address global challenges in health care. ChE Professor Rebecca Carrier and University College Dublin Professor David Brayden will partner on one of the new research projects.

Feb 08, 2024
Improving Bioavailability in Oral Drug Delivery
ChE Professor Rebecca Carrier is developing an algorithm-driven, streamlined process for drug delivery to potentially reduce dosages and side effects. She received a Spark Fund award from the Center for Research Innovation at Northeastern for this research.

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.

Feb 01, 2024
Faculty and Staff Awards 2024
The College of Engineering recognized faculty and staff at the annual faculty and staff awards event and thanked everyone for their hard work and dedication in support of our students, college, and university during the 2023-2024 academic year. View award recipients and photo gallery.

Jul 20, 2023
Spring 2023 Spark Fund Awardees
MIE Associate Professor Randal Erb, ChE/BioE Associate Professor Eno Ebong, ChE Professor Rebecca Carrier, and MIE Associate Professor Yi Zheng are recipients of the Spring 2023 Spark Fund Awards from Northeastern’s Center for Research Innovation.