Integration and Bridging of Multiscale Bioengineering Designs and Tissue Biomechanics

Dr. Jun Liao is a Professor of Biomedical Engineering in the Department of Bioengineering at the University of Texas at Arlington (UTA). He is a Fellow of AIMBE, ASME, and AHA.  He received his Ph.D. in Biomedical Engineering from the Cleveland Clinic Foundation/Cleveland State University and his postdoctoral training from the University of Pittsburgh. Dr. Liao’s research is far-reaching, covering tissue biomechanics, tissue engineering and regeneration, and computational modeling and simulation. Dr. Liao has published 110 peer-reviewed journal articles, 195 conference presentations/posters, 9 book chapters, and 2 books. He is currently an Associate Editor for BMES Annals of Biomedical Engineering, ASME Journal of Medical Devices, and the Frontiers in Bioengineering and Biotechnology. He is an Editorial Board Member for the Engineered Regeneration Journal and Bioengineering Journal. He also serves as the Co-Leader of the Cardiovascular Theme in the ASME Bioengineering Division. As the team Faculty Mentor, Dr. Liao guided four UTA seniors to win the BMES Coulter College Design Competition Best Overall Award in 2023.  Dr. Joyce Wong is a Professor of Biomedical Engineering and Materials Science & Engineering at Boston University. She is a Fellow of the NAI, AAAS, BMES, AIMBE, IAMBE, CRS, and IUSBSE. She received her PhD in Materials Science & Engineering in the Program for Polymer Science & Technology from MIT and was a NIH postdoctoral fellow at the University of California, Santa Barbara. She is an Inaugural Term Distinguished Professor in the College of Engineering at Boston University. She is a past president of AIMBE and was recently elected President-Elect of Society for Biomaterials. Her research focuses on developing biomaterials for the early detection and treatment of disease with focus on maternal and child health. Her current projects include pediatric bioengineered blood vessel patches, theranostic agents to detect and treat abdominal surgical adhesions, and most recently, development of biomaterial systems for maternal health. She has published over 120 peer-reviewed publications, 11 pending or issued patents, and has mentored over 100 trainees. In 2020, she received the Clemson Award for Basic Research from the Society for Biomaterials. She currently serves on the NIH NIBIB Advisory Council and is currently a Deputy Editor for Science Advances.

• Mechanical and structural contributions of elastin and collagen fibers to interlamellar bonding in the arterial wall.- Tissue engineering of vascular constructs.- Engineering the multiscale complexity of vascular networks.- Epicardial layer and endocardial layer as mechanical protective interfaces for cardiac function.- Dynamic remodeling in live cardiomyocytes.- Controlling the contractile strength of engineered cardiac muscle by hierarchal tissue architecture.- Multiscale light-sheet for rapid assessing of cardiac architecture and function.- Spongiosa as an integrative interface for aortic valve trilayered structure.- Advances in experimental and computational biomechanics of the tricuspid heart valve.- Heterogeneous and multiscale mechanical behavior of aortic valve leaflets.- Multi-scale approach to investigate mechanically-induced changes in tricuspid valve anterior leaflet microstructure.- Multiscale Mechanical Considerations for Polymeric Heart Valve Development.- The stabilization of elastin network in heart valve tissue engineering.- Glutaraldehyde cross-linked mitral valves.- Contribution of glycosaminoglycans to tendon mechanical properties.- Interfibrillar shear stress as the loading mechanism of collagen fibrils in tendon.- Tendon-to-bone Interface: structural-mechanical integration of enthesis.- Hierarchical collagen fiber formation for functional tendon, ligament, and meniscus replacement.- Tissue-engineered collagen graft using a novel load-bearing suture technique.- Tendon/Ligament repair with biomimetic and smart cellular constructs.- Tendon/Ligament-Like tissue via three-dimensional cyclic mechanical stretch culture system.