Mona Minkara
Assistant Professor,
Bioengineering
Affiliated Faculty,
Chemistry and Chemical Biology
Office
- 325 ISEC
- 617.373.2031
Research Focus
Pulmonary surfactant (PS), Surfactant immunoproteins, Innate immune response, Computational methods, Computational modeling, Molecular Dynamics, Monte Carlo Simulations, Interfacial Phenomena, Biological interfaces, Therapeutics, Molecular Biophysics, Computational chemistry, Bioengineering, STEM Accessibility
About
Dr. Mona Minkara is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Bioengineering and an Affiliate Faculty in the Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology at Northeastern University. She received her Bachelor of Arts from Wellesley College and her Ph.D. in Chemistry from the University of Florida. Dr. Minkara is the head of the COMBINE (Computational Modeling for Biointerface Engineering) Lab, which focuses on the study of pulmonary surfactant, a complex protein-lipid substance secreted by the alveoli in the lungs and its potential therapeutic applications in the medical field. Dr. Minkara specializes in using an array of computational tools to apply to biomolecular problems, and her laboratory is developing innovative approaches that combine protein and surfactant modeling to investigate the PS system computationally. As a blind scientist, she is committed to making science more accessible and inclusive through engineering new tools for blind and partially sighted scientists, and she is involved in several projects dedicated to promoting accessibility in STEM fields. The importance of interdisciplinary research is emphasized in her work, which highlights the efficacy of computational methods in drug discovery and elucidating the complexities of the pulmonary surfactant (PS) system.
Education
- PhD, Chemistry, University of Florida Gainesville, 2015
- BA, Chemistry and Middle-Eastern Studies, Wellesley College, 2009
Honors & Awards
- 2024 NSF CAREER Award
- 2022 Martin Essigmann Outstanding Teaching Award
- Ford Foundation Fellowship from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine
- National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship
Professional Affiliations
- American Chemical Society (ACS)
- American Institute of Chemical Engineering (AIChE)
- The Biophysical Society
- The Protein Society
Research Overview
Pulmonary surfactant (PS), Surfactant immunoproteins, Innate immune response, Computational methods, Computational modeling, Molecular Dynamics, Monte Carlo Simulations, Interfacial Phenomena, Biological interfaces, Therapeutics, Molecular Biophysics, Computational chemistry, Bioengineering, STEM Accessibility
Prof. Minkara’s research programs, which center around pulmonary surfactant research and computational techniques, are situated at the intersection of molecular biophysics, computational chemistry, and bioengineering, and are comprised of five distinct programs aimed at enhancing accessibility and advancing scientific understanding.
Program 1: The structure and function of surfactant immunoproteins for the engineering of potential therapeutics.
Program 2: The study, understanding, and modeling of the monolayer to bilayer transition of PS to help engineer a more effective synthetic PS.
Program 3: Modeling drug delivery mechanisms.
Program 4. Engineering computational techniques and methods for the study of biological interfaces.
Program 5. Engineering tools and techniques to make STEM research accessible to the blind.
Selected Research Projects
- Foundational Investigations into Bacterial Surface Glycan Dynamics
- – Principal Investigator, NIH
- Modeling and Computation for Discovery of Molecular Probes for SARS-CoV-2 Proteins
- – Co-Principal Investigator, National Science Foundation
Department Research Areas
Selected Publications
- Li, D.; Minkara, M.* Elucidating the Enhanced Binding Affinity of a Double Mutant SP-D with Trimannose on the Influenza A Virus Using Molecular Dynamics. Computational and Structural Biotechnology Journal 2022, 20, 4984-5000. DOI: 10.1016/j.csbj.2022.08.045
- Koone, J.C.; Dashnaw, C.M.; Alonzo, E.; Iglesias, M.A.; Patero, K.S.; Lopez, J.; Zhang, S.Y.; Zechmann, B.; Cook, N.; Minkara, M.; Supalo, C.A.; Wedler, H.B.; Guberman-Pfeffer, M.; Shaw, B.F. Data for all: tactile graphics that light up with picture-perfect resolution. Science Advances 2022, 8 (33). DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.abq2640
- Minkara, M.; Josephson, T.R.; Venteicher, C.L.; Greenvall, B.R.; Lindsey, R.K.; Koenig, P.H.; Siepmann, J.I. Nonane and Hexanol Adsorption in the Lamellar Phase of a Nonionic Surfactant: Molecular Simulations and Comparison to Ideal Adsorbed Solution Theory. Journal of Chemical Physics 2022, 126 (21), 3940-3949. DOI: 10.1021/acs.jpcb.2c02871
Sep 25, 2024
Fall 2024 PEAK Experiences Awardees for Undergrad Research
Several COE, COS, and Khoury students mentored by COE faculty are recipients of the Fall 2024 PEAK Experiences Awards from Northeastern’s Office of Undergraduate Research and Fellowships.
Sep 23, 2024
$1.95M NIH MIRA R35 Award for Developing New Strategies To Combat Bacterial Infections
BioE Assistant Professor Mona Minkara was awarded a $1.95 million NIH R35 MIRA Award for Early-Stage Investigators for “Foundational Investigations Into Bacterial Surface Glycan Dynamics.” The project aims to advance knowledge of bacterial and glycan behavior, leading to new ways to enhance health and prevent infections.
May 08, 2024
2024 URF Scholars Recipients
Several engineering students received 2024 URF Scholars Awards from Northeastern’s Office of Undergraduate Research and Fellowships. URF Scholars are students who are graduating this year and who have earned a PEAK Experiences Award, applied for a distinguished fellowship, or participated in graduate school advising.
May 07, 2024
Summer 2024 PEAK Experiences Awardees for Undergrad Research
Several engineering and science students mentored by COE faculty are recipients of the Summer 2024 PEAK Experiences Awards from Northeastern’s Office of Undergraduate Research and Fellowships.
Apr 25, 2024
Celebrating Affinity Student Groups at the 18th Annual Joint Recognition Banquet
Students, faculty, staff, alumni, and corporate partners were recognized for their commitments to several COE affinity student groups at the 18th Annual Joint Recognition Banquet. The groups represented included SHPE, SWE, BESS, SASE, and DICE.
Mar 12, 2024
NSF CAREER Award To Improve Immune Response With AI
BioE Assistant Professor Mona Minkara was awarded a $827,000 NSF CAREER Award for “Decoding the Code of Glycan-Collectin Interactions: Computational Engineering of Surfactant Proteins for Tailored Glycan Recognition.” The focus will be to better understand and improve the immune system response to pathogens.
Mar 11, 2024
Mona Minkara Advocates for Accessibility in Science
BioE Assistant Professor Mona Minkara was featured in the Chemical and Engineering News article “Mona Minkara Advocates for Accessibility in Science.”
Feb 01, 2024
Celebrating Bioengineering at Northeastern: Visions for the Future
The Department of Bioengineering hosted a 10 year anniversary celebration to commemorate what the department has accomplished and showcase its plans for the future.
Jan 11, 2024
Spring 2024 PEAK Experiences Awardees for Undergrad Research
A record number of engineering and science students mentored by COE faculty are recipients of the Spring 2024 PEAK Experiences Awards from Northeastern’s Office of Undergraduate Research and Fellowships.
Sep 15, 2023
Fall 2023 PEAK Experiences Awardees for Undergrad Research
Several engineering and science students mentored by COE faculty are recipients of Fall 2023 PEAK Experiences Awards from Northeastern’s Office of Undergraduate Research and Fellowships.