Ben Walter awarded NIH R21 grant

Congratulations to Ben Walter, assistant professor, Biomedical Engineering (BME) who has received a new 2-year National Institute of Heath (NIH) R21 award for his research programs that seek to develop novel therapies for low back pain. 

His research titled “Osmotic Properties of Healthy and Degenerated Cell Pericellular Matrix” uses novel nanoscale DNA origami biosensors and micro-scale mass spectroscopy techniques to determine the magnitude of the osmotic pressures experienced by the cells embedded within tissue and how these signals change under load and with disease. This information will hopefully provide novel insights into how mechanical loading can be harnessed to develop regenerative strategies to treat low back pain.

This project is in collaboration with associate professor, Carlos Castro (Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering); research scientist, John Olesik (Earth Science); and associate professor Derek Hansford (BME). The project period is 01/01/2020—12/31/2021, with a total budget of $359,000.