Rebecca L. Carrier

COE Distinguished Professor & Associate Chair for Research and Faculty Affairs,  Chemical Engineering
Affiliated Faculty,  Bioengineering
Affiliated Faculty,  Biology

Contact

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

Advanced Drug Delivery Research Lab

The Advanced Drug Delivery Lab applies engineering principles to develop relevant models of health and disease and enable effective delivery of therapeutics. We focus largely on advancing intestinal and retinal tissue engineering and drug delivery.

Advanced Drug Delivery Research Lab

Selected Research Projects

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

Faculty

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.

Faculty

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.

Faculty

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.

Faculty

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.

Faculty

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.

Faculty

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.

Faculty

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.

Faculty

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.

Faculty

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.

Faculty

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.

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