AFFILIATION
University of Colorado Boulder, United States
SUMMARY OF WINNING ENTRY
For Advancement in Design of Polymeric Biomaterials and Methods for Biomedical Applications
Professor Kristi Anseth is a pioneer, who has developed biomaterial cell culture systems, to decipher extracellular matrix (ECM) signals that regulate tissue development, maintenance and regeneration. She designed synthetic ECM that captures the unique cell and dynamic tissue microenvironment in three-dimensional space that can be modulated on demand, providing a means to study 4D-biology. She studies how cells exchange information with the ECM and applies this knowledge to engineer biomaterials for tissue regeneration and disease states, as well as screening drugs. She is renowned for blending modern molecular and cellular biology with engineering and mathematics to produce the next generation of biomaterials that are tissue substitutes able to restore, maintain, or improve tissue function.
SCALE OF IMPACT
Professor Anseth launched the field of biomaterial scaffolds with properties that are actively responsive. She made use of photochemical reactions, which allow unprecedented spatiotemporal control of cellular responses in the context of tissue microenvironments. Her field-defining experiments elucidate the role of extracellular matrix signaling on cell fate, allowing for the creation of photo-responsive hydrogels as synthetic ECM analogs that reveal the biology of myofibroblast activation and cardiac fibrosis. Her work is foundational for studies and insights into tissue maintenance and regeneration, laying a path for the development of biomaterials for regenerative medicine.
MEANINGFUL CHANGE
Professor Anseth’s pioneering work on photo-controlled polymeric materials provides a foundation for the study of 4-D biology in vitro with responsive synthetic ECM. This foundation reveals unforeseen concepts for innovative biomaterials and provides methods for biomedical applications that are anticipated to change the field of regenerative medicine.
