Biofabrication Technologies for Tissue and Organ Engineering and Manufacturing

Prof. Lorenzo Moroni studied Biomedical Engineering at Polytechnic University of Milan, Italy, and Nanoscale Sciences at Chalmers Technical University, Sweden. He received his Ph.D. cum laude in 2006 at University of Twente on 3D scaffolds for cartilage and osteochondral regeneration, for which he was awarded the European doctorate award in Biomaterials and Tissue Engineering from the European Society of Biomaterials. His research group interests aim at developing new biofabrication technologies to generate libraries of 3D scaffolds able to control cell fate. This passes through the design of biomaterials, 3D scaffolds, physicochemical, mechanical, and surface properties to better understand cell-material interactions. From 2010-2013, he was a co-founder and scientific advisor of the biotech company Screvo B.V., which is committed to the production of animal implantable 3D high through-put screening systems. He is currently exploring possibilities to start a new spin-off to bring regenerative medicine products for vascular applications to the clinics.

Dr. Lee has extensive knowledge and experience in biomaterials science, especially, biodegradable polymers and tunable hydrogels, with specific training and expertise in key research areas for tissue engineering and regenerative medicine. His research team has developed various biomaterial systems that improve cellular interactions by providing appropriate environmental cues. Dr. Lee’s research team also demonstrated the principle of “in situ tissue regeneration” that is to take advantage of the body’s own regenerating capacity by using the host's ability to mobilize endogenous stem cells to the site of injury. Currently, his research has focused on development of strategies for in situ tissue regeneration in terms of mechanism of host cell recruitment, cell sourcing, cellular and molecular roles in cell differentiation, navigational cues and niche signals, and a tissue-specific smart biomaterial system from the perspective of regenerative medicine and tissue engineering.