The primary goal of the Orthopaedic Biomaterials and Tissue Engineering Laboratory is development and testing of orthopaedic biomaterials and implantable sensors. One goal of these projects is to produce engineered tissues using 3D printed biomaterials and autologous adipose derived stem cells to regenerate musculoskeletal tissues including bone and cartilage. A second goal is to develop bone bondable sensors that will facilitate measurement of fracture healing, monitor the quality of regenerated tissues, and monitor long-term bone health for assessment of additional fracture risk and efficacy of medications used to reduce fracture risk. The projects the lab works on include a highly collaborative team and utilize numerous techniques to evaluate new biomaterials and sensors. 

Current collaborators in our team include Drs. Philipp Gutruf, Hannah Budinoff, Douglas Loy, Barrett Potter, and Krishna Muralidharan. Due to the wide-ranging expertise of the team members, we utilize numerous techniques to accomplish our goals, with ultimate testing of new biomaterials occurring in cell culture as well as small and large animal models. Our team welcomes students with an interest in electronics fabrication, computer programming, materials fabrication, materials characterization, computer aided design, additive manufacturing, biomechanics, high-resolution CT imaging, and hard tissue histology.