Date/Time
Date(s) - 01/26/2024
9:00 am - 10:00 am
Category(ies)
Daniel Alge, PhD
Associate Professor, Department of Biomedical Engineering at Texas A&M University (TAMU)
Date: Friday, January 26, 2024
Time: 9:00 a.m.
Location: PSH 152
Abstract
Hydrogels are remarkably versatile materials for biomedical applications. Their utility is expanded further through the implementation of granular designs based on assemblies of hydrogel microparticles. In this seminar, I will discuss the state-of-the-art in hydrogel biomaterials and describe our progress in developing granular hydrogels for medical and biological applications. First, I will discuss our work developing clickable hydrogel microparticle bioinks for extrusion-based bioprinting and our efforts to elucidate how hydrogel microparticle properties, chemistry, and printing parameters can be tuned to optimize printing outcomes. Subsequently, I will discuss our work on hydrogel microparticle-based scaffolds for mesenchymal stem cell culture, osteoinductive growth factor delivery to regenerate bone defects, and neural progenitor cell delivery to repair the spinal cord after traumatic injury. I will also discuss our work engineering enzyme-functionalized microgel assemblies to regulate oxygen concentration in microbial cultures. Finally, I will share our recent studies on the impact of poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG) immunogenicity on regenerative outcomes with PEG-based granular hydrogels, which show that bone regeneration is significantly affected. This work challenges the view that PEG is a biologically inert “blank slate” and has important implications because of the growing concerns over PEG immunogenicity.
BioSketch
Dr. Daniel Alge is an Associate Professor in the Department of Biomedical Engineering at Texas A&M University (TAMU). He earned a B.S. in Biosystems Engineering from Clemson University and a Ph.D. in Biomedical Engineering from Purdue University, and he was a postdoctoral fellow in Chemical and Biological Engineering at the University of Colorado Boulder. Dr. Alge’s research focuses on hydrogel biomaterials for applications in regenerative engineering, medical devices, and living systems. His research has been funded by the National Institutes of Health, National Science Foundation, Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, and Craig H. Neilsen Foundation. Dr. Alge’s list of awards includes the TAMU Association of Former Students Distinguished Achievement in Teaching Award – University Level (2022) and the TAMU Dean of Engineering Excellence Award – Assistant Professor Level (2020). Dr. Alge previously served as the chair of the Engineering Cells and Their Microenvironments special interest group within the Society for Biomaterials (2021-2023) and was recently appointed as an Associate Editor of the Journal of Biomedical Materials Research Part A.