Current Positions

Assistant Professor, Department of Physiology and Pathophysiology, University of Manitoba
Research Scientist, CHRIM (Internal)

Education

BSc Hons (Physiology), University of Western Australia
PhD (Physiology), University of Western Australia

Research Focus

The long-term goal of my research program is to develop novel bioengineering technologies to create physiologically relevant experimental models of complex tissues. These technologies underpin ongoing fundamental research into how the mechanical environment modulates basic cellular processes, and how this manifests functionally at the tissue and organ level. Most notably, the laboratory uses three-dimensional (3D) bioprinting to create functional muscle tissue from cultured human and animal muscle cells. This 3D bioprinted muscle behaves just like a real muscle in the body. Through an academic industrial partnership with Aspect Biosystems and a network of academic collaborators, uptake of these technologies is also fueling collaborative projects with significant commercial and biomedical research potential.

Research Interests

- 3D bioprinting
- Asthma
- Smooth muscle
- Cardiac muscle
- Skeletal muscle