Andrews Group
Our laboratory is very interested in understanding the functional and organizational patterns underlying complex systems, i.e. to relate the proteome to the genome. A major focus has been the development of new technologies for comprehensive analysis of the responses of living cells to their environment at the molecular level, e.g. linking protein structure information to genome sequence. Thus a goal has been to achieve ultra-high throughput analysis of the majority of the proteins present in cells.
Barald GroupWe are interested in the early development of neuronal lineages from the embryonic neural crest; which appears transiently during development and which is a source of peripheral nervous system neurons, among many other cell types. We use specific monoclonal antibodies and no-flow cytometry to isolate neural crest subpopulations. We also study the role of the neurofibromatosis I gene (a tumor suppressor gene) in neural crest development and neuronal/ melanocyte/Schwann cell lineage specification and apoptosis, using mouse embryonic stem cells. An additional line of research examines the role of the embryonic hindbrain, periotic mesenchyme and neural crest in shaping inner ear development and the roles of transcription factor and growth factor genes (e.g. BMPs) and their antagonists, such as Noggin, Chordin and DAN, in axis formation and development of the embryonic otocyst
Bull Group
Our research is focused in the areas of Gas Embolotherapy, Vascular Mechanics,Total Artificial Lungs,Liquid Ventilation, and Biological Microfluidics. Biotransport relates to the transport of energy, mass, and momentum essential to the function of living systems. Transport processes are evident from the smallest spatial scales of molecular dimensions to the large scales of whole organs and of organisms themselves.
Burke Group
The Burke Laboratory research effort is concentrated in three main areas: (1) the analysis of the stability of gene expression during mammalian aging, (2) quantitative trait locus (QTL) analysis of complex, mulitgenic traits in the laboratory mouse, and (3) the development of engineering systems for microfluidic analysis.
Burns Group
We are a research group focusing in the advancement and proliferation of microfluidic technology by developing baseline technology and creating new and exciting applications using microfluidics. This includes biochemical separations, field-enhanced separations, microfabricated chemical analysis systems, DNA genotyping and sequencing.
Chen Group
Our group explores the chemistry of interfaces, using a variety of state-of-the-art techniques. Our research is highly interdisciplinary, integrating analytical chemistry, physical chemistry, materials chemistry, polymer science, surface science, molecular spectroscopy, microscopy, bioengineering, life sciences, laser techniques, nonlinear optics, and nano-technology.
Chronis Group
Bio-MEMS and Microfluidics, Biomedical Optics, Neural Engineering.
El-Sayed Group
Our research program at the Cellular Engineering & Nano-Therapeutics Laboratory focuses on the development of sophisticated drug delivery systems that enhance the therapeutic activity of the incorporated drug molecules while eliminating or minimizing their potential side effects by selectively targeting the diseased tissue with cellular and sub-cellular accuracy. To achieve this goal, his lab designs and synthesizes novel polymeric carriers that can effectively shuttle anticancer, antiviral, and nucleic acid drugs to the desired therapeutic targets.
Eniola-Adefeso Group
Our research goal is to use knowledge of the cellular inflammatory response and blood flow dynamics to design bio-functionalized particles for targeted drug delivery and imaging. Due to their high specific interaction with their counter-receptors and their carefully regulated expression (limit to inflammation), leukocyte-endothelium adhesion molecules (LECAM) are attractive molecules for vascular targeting in human diseases in which inflammation plays a role.
Fu Group
Our group's interests lie at the nexus of micro/nanoengineering, biophysics, biology, and biotechnology. In the coming years, we will focus on developing integrated systems for high throughput quantitative micro/nanoscale analysis of molecular and cellular functions. More specifically, we will develop integrated techniques to investigate biomolecules confined in micro/nanofluidic environments.
Giannobile GroupBio-Nanotechnology, Biomaterials, Biomedical Imaging, Tissue Engineering and Regenerative Medicine.
Gnegy Group
One project in my laboratory concerns the mechanism of action of amphetamine at the dopamine transporter. We investigate: (1) the role of signal transduction in regulating the effects of amphetamine, most prominently protein kinase C; (2) the effect of phosphorylation-related mutations on amphetamine function; and (3) the effect of amphetamine on trafficking of the dopamine transporter. In a second project, we examine interactions between amphetamines and nicotine.
Grotberg Group
Our laboratory engage in a variety of scientific endeavors which have, as a common base, the underlying principles of fluid mechanics and transport processes. Our work involves investigations of the respiratory, cardiovascular, and ocular systems using both experimental (benchtop & animal) and theoretical (analytical & computational) approaches.
Gulari Group
Our group’s research is on reactions at interfaces and developing microfluidic MEMS devices for biosynthesis and genetic diagnosis. Currently the largest effort in my group is devoted towards making “biochips” or DNA and peptide chips for gene expression, SNP detection and drug – protein interactions. We are into our third generation DNA chips and microfluidic reactor systems. Our patented technology allows massively parallel synthesis of DNA oligomers and peptides on silicon/glass and plastic chips. In terms of application we are focusing on diagnostic applications in the area of water and food safety as well as medical diagnostics.
Guo Group
Nanoelectronic devices, nanofabrication technology and its application in optical and magnetic devices.
Hakansson Group
Our research focuses on developing and applying novel analytical methods, based on gas-phase radical ion chemistry, to the structural characterization of biological molecules. This work is interdisciplinary and performed by both Analytical Chemistry and Chemical Biology graduate students as well as postdoctoral researchers with expertise in Physical and Inorganic Chemistry. Specifically, we are interested in two tandem mass spectrometry techniques: electron capture dissociation (ECD) and electron detachment dissociation (EDD), which produce radical cations and anions, respectively, by attaching or detaching electrons from even-electron biomolecular ions created by electrospray ionization.
Hart Group
Research in the Mechanosynthesis Group focuses on synthesis, properties, and applications of nanostructures and nanomaterials. Our work encompasses fundamental studies of synthesis and structure, development of novel material and device applications, and creation of machines and processes for scalable and precise nanomanufacturing.
Kennedy Group
Microfabricated analytical systems combining high speed capillary electrophoresis with zeptomole detection limits for on-line monitoring of cellular signaling events in insulin release or neurotransmission.
Kurabayashi Group
Microelectromechanical systems (MEMS); microscale thermal engineering and design; heat transfer in micro/nano structures; semiconductor processing for micromechanical structure fabrication; microfluidic device; sensors and actuators.
Lahann Group
Surface engineering, advanced polymers, biomimetic materials, engineered microenvironments, and nano-scale self-assembly.
Larson Group
Our Research focuses on Rheology of Complex Fluids. Through rheological experiments, theory, and computer simulations, I am trying to work out the relationship between the structure of complex fluids and their rheology. Such knowledge is valuable in the optimal design of such fluids for applications in the polymer, pharmaceutical, and electronics industries. Of particular interest at present are branched polymer melts, surfactant solutions, and biopolymers.
Linderman Group
Our research centers on the application of chemical engineering principles to the study of fundamental problems in biology and medicine. In particular, we focus on the biochemical and biophysical mechanisms a cell uses to sense, respond to, and interact with its environment. This communication between cells and their surroundings is critical not only to normal mammalian cell function but also to the detection of foreign invaders (immunology) and the response to drugs (pharmacology). An ability to quantitatively understand and manipulate these mechanisms is thus crucial to many areas of modern biotechnology.
Liu Group
Luker Group
Microbiology and Immunology faculty conduct research in the areas of microbial pathogenesis. These include those interested in viral pathogens including DNA and RNA viruses that cause acute and persistent infections of humans and model organisms.
MacDougald Group
One of the goals of my research program is to determine the molecular mechanisms by which extracellular signals regulate mesenchymal cell fate decisions. Mesenchymal stem cells have the capacity to differentiate into a number of cell types, including adipocytes, osteoblasts and myocytes. While the focus of my lab has been on defining the genetic program of adipogenesis and its regulation by Wnt signaling, we are now extending this line of research to signals that determine whether stem cells differentiate into adipocytes or osteoblasts.
Maldonado Group
Our group is interested in systems that capture, convert, and store incident solar energy as chemical bond energy.
Mayer Group
Research in the Biomembrane Lab focuses on transport and signaling processes across biological membranes. The goal of the group is to increase the molecular understanding of these processes and ultimately to employ the ensuing insight to diagnose and possibly treat human disease. We are particularly interested in ion channel proteins that are involved in Alzheimer’s disease and in autoimmune diseases such as multiple sclerosis, rheumatoid arthritis, and type I diabetes mellitus, as well as transporter proteins that are responsible for resistance to chemotherapy in treatment of cancer.
Meiners Group
Oor lab has been studying Lac repressor-mediated DNA looping as a model system for understanding biomechanical gene regulation. Our thinking about gene regulation is dominated by biochemistry, yet the DNA containing our genes is a polymeric molecule whose mechanical properties need to be carefully considered. For certain regulatory processes such as DNA looping, that require contortions of the DNA, the mechanics might actively participate in controlling expression.
Meyerhoff Group
Our research interests are in the areas of bioanalytical chemistry, electrochemical and optical sensors, novel nitric oxide releasing/generating biomaterials, and immunoassays.
Meyhofer Group
Our research focues on dna mechanics, biophotonics, optical trapping, and kinesin mechanics.
Morris Group
We are leaders in Raman microspectroscopy and microscopic imaging. We develop new spectroscopic instrumentation based on modern photonics technology and new chemometric and other image processing methods for generation of hyperspectral image contrast. A core interest is the chemistry that governs the properties of musculo-skeletal tissues.
Morrison Group
Our research involves studying mechanisms that regulate stem cell function in the hematopoietic and nervous systems.
Neubig Group
Our research in the Neubig Lab focuses on mechanisms of signal transduction through GTP binding proteins (G proteins) and the receptors which activate them. We are interested in structural and kinetic mechanisms of GPCR signals and the development of drugs which target novel sites in signal transduction processes.
Pecoraro Group
Our research focuses on inorganic and bioinorganic chemistry.
Penner-Hahn Group
Our research is interested in understanding the detailed mechanism of these enzymes:Spectroscopic investigation of metal site structure in bioinorganic systems. There is a large group of enzymes (including methionine synthase and farnesyl transferase) in which a Zn active site is intimately involved in transfer of an alkyl group from an alkyl donor to a thiol acceptor.
Satin Group
Our rresearch is concerned with two broad areas: 1) The role of ion channels and membrane excitability in the control of insulin exocytosis from pancreatic islets of Langerhans in health and disease, and 2) the cellular and molecular mechanisms which lead to synaptic dysfunction following traumatic brain injury (TBI). Techniques used in our research include patch clamp electrophysiology, intracellular free [Ca2+] measurements, PCR and RT-PCR, western blotting, FRET, immunocytochemistry, mathematical modeling, cell culture, confocal microscopy, gene transfection (including using adenovirus approaches) and secretion measurements
Sherman Group
Our research is particularly interested in the biosynthesis of terrestrial and marine natural products. A large number of novel natural products are being discovered from terrestrial and novel marine microbes. These exciting sources of new chemical entities will provide a wealth of unique information about the organization, structure, and regulation of genes involved in secondary metabolism. The focus over the past five decades has been entirely on secondary metabolite pathways of terrestrial microorganisms.
Smith Group
Our research interests include intracellular regulation of oocyte chromatin remodeling and segregation during meiosis, factors and forces influencing sperm function, and microenvironment and its influence on preimplantation embryos and human embryos stem cell (hESC) development.
Solomon Group
Our research interests are in the area of complex fluids – soft materials with properties intermediate between fluids and solids. His group has applied new 3D confocal microscopy methods to generate discoveries in nanocolloidal assembly, colloidal gelation, and the biomechanics of bacterial biofilms. His work has also included discovery of a universal scaling for polymer scission in turbulence that identifies the limits that scission imposes on turbulent drag reduction. Other research interests have included the rheology of polymer nanocomposites, the microrheology of complex fluids and the microfluidic synthesis of anisotropic particles.
Stegemann Group
Our laboratory focuses on how cells interact with the 3D protein matrix around them, and how these interactions can be used to develop better biomaterials and engineered tissues. The biologically-derived proteins collagen and fibrin are of particular interest, due to their role as structural proteins in tissues and the range of effects that these polymers can have on cell function. We are developing composite biomaterials that combine the structural and biochemical features of these polymers, and which also incorporate other proteins that direct cell function.
Takayama Group
Our research interests specialize in the development of microfluidics and micro/nanotechnology platforms capable of testing cells and subcellular components with combinations of mechanical, chemical, electrical, topographical, and thermal stimuli. We apply combinations of these factors to create physiologically relevant in vitro environments that allow us to better understand cell behavior and function in healthy and diseased states in vivo.
Tremper Group
The Department of Anesthesiology at the University of Michigan is one of the premier academic training programs in the country. For that reason the discovery of new knowledge, along with clinical service and education, is a primary department and institution mission.
Walter Group
Non-coding ribonucleic acid (RNA) has recently been found to be the key component, often capable of enzymatic action, in a multitude of essential cellular processes, such as gene regulation - through processes including RNA interference and riboswitching, translation, and splicing. RNA thus is increasingly finding important applications in modern biotechnology and medicine, for example as biosensor and gene therapeutic agent. Our research explores the world of such catalytic RNAs, or "ribozymes", as well as other non-protein coding RNAs by using single-molecule and bulk-solution biochemical and biophysical tools. Which means that we work on fascinating biological catalysts at the interface of Chemistry, Biology, and Physics.
Woolf Group
The goal of the research in my group is to integrate experimental data together to create computational, systems level models of how cancer initiates and grows. In particular, we study cancers that arise from the misregulation of the sonic hedgehog signaling pathway—a master regulator of embryonic development.
Yoon Group
Our research is particularly interested in BioMEMS, Microfluidics, Biosensors, and Integrated Microsystems.
Zellers Group
Our research is highly interdisciplinary, involving collaborations with faculty and students from several other departments on campus, as well as researchers at national laboratories and private research and development firms. Our current research involves: development of chemical microsensors and microsensor arrays for monitoring volatile and semi-volatile organic molecules in air and biological media development of microfabricated preconcentration and separation devices and strategies for complex mixtures of such molecules integration of these and related devices in microanalytical systems for complex mixture analysis design, synthesis, and characterization of new materials for use in such microsystems implementation of microsystems in monitoring applications related to environmental health (e.g., personal inhalation exposures, local or global air-quality monitoring networks, homeland security monitoring, determinations of breath biomarkers of disease).
