Kara Spiller

Dr. Swathi Balaji is currently an Assistant Professor in the Department of Surgery at Baylor College of Medicine and Texas Children’s Hospital (BCM/TCH) in Houston, Texas. The research in her laboratory focuses on understanding the sequelae of fibrosis in response to dermal injuries in postnatal patients, with a particular emphasis on understanding 1) how individuals from broad patient demographics respond to similar injuries with significantly “heterogeneous” scarring patterns that lead to a spectrum of postnatal fibrotic outcomes, and 2) why scars persist once formed. She is currently studying the fibroblast energy metabolism and inter cellular signaling mechanisms that communicate and regulate the fibrogenic phenotype mediated via the secretion of extracellular vesicles also known as exosomes. Prior to joining BCM/TCH in 2015, Dr. Balaji received her Ph.D. in Biomedical Engineering in 2010 from the University of Cincinnati, where she first gained interest in wound healing and tissue regeneration when she had the opportunity to work with Professors Daria Narmoneva, Ph.D. at the University of Cincinnati and Timothy Crombleholme, M.D. at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center. She then worked as a Postdoctoral Fellow in Dr. Sundeep Keswani’s Laboratory at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, where she studied the scarless wound healing mechanisms of the fetal regenerative responses.

Simon Matoori is an assistant professor at the Faculty of Pharmacy at Université de Montréal in Québec, Canada. His bioengineering laboratory develops new wound dressings for molecular diagnostics at the point-of-care in diabetic foot ulcers.

Ed Sander is a Professor in the Roy J. Carver Department of Biomedical Engineering at the University of Iowa, with secondary appointments in Chemical and Biochemical Engineering and Orthopedic and Rehabilitation Therapy. He obtained his B.S. in Chemical Engineering from the University of Texas at Austin and his Ph.D. in Biomedical Engineering from Tulane University. He was also a visiting research associate in the Department of Mechanical Engineering at Purdue University, an NIH NRSA postdoctoral fellow in the Department of Biomedical Engineering at the University of Minnesota, and a research associate at the Cincinnati Shriners Hospital for Children and the Department of Surgery at the University of Cincinnati. Dr. Sander’s research interests are broad, span multiple disciplines, and include both computational and experimental work. His primary focus is on the role of mechanobiological processes in wound healing, fibrosis, and scar formation. He has secured multiple federal and private foundation grants including an NSF CAREER award. He is the Director of Graduate studies and was the Director of the NSF REU on Computational Bioengineering. He is a fellow of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers and the American Institute of Medical and Biological Engineers. He is the editor-in-chief of the Biomedical Engineering Society journal Cellular and Molecular Bioengineering.

Dr. Kara Spiller is a Professor in Drexel University's School of Biomedical Engineering, Science, and Health Systems. Her research interests include the role of immune cells in tissue regeneration, the design of immunomodulatory biomaterials, and international engineering education. Her research is funded by the NIH, the NSF, and private foundations. Her awards include a Fulbright fellowship, the NSF CAREER award, and the United States nomination for the ASPIRE prize.

The main focus of Dr. Zomer’s research has been on regenerative medicine approaches to improve skin wound healing, particularly in the context of aging. Combining her training as a veterinarian and in molecular and cell biology, she brings perspectives that span foundational science to clinical applications.

Dr. Kara Spiller is a Professor in Drexel University's School of Biomedical Engineering, Science, and Health Systems. Her research interests include the role of immune cells in tissue regeneration, the design of immunomodulatory biomaterials, and international engineering education. Her research is funded by the NIH, the NSF, and private foundations. Her awards include a Fulbright fellowship, the NSF CAREER award, and the United States nomination for the ASPIRE prize.

David Margolis is the Gerald S. Lazarus Professor of Dermatology at the University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine. He is the Vice Chair for Faculty Affairs for the Department of Dermatology. He also is a Professor of Epidemiology in the Department of Biostatistics, Epidemiology, and Informatics and an Assistant Dean of Faculty Affairs in the Perelman School of Medicine. Dr. Margolis's research work has focused on using pharmacoepidemiologic tools to study the epidemiology and treatment of chronic wounds, atopic dermatitis, acne, and other dermatological illnesses. He has been the Principal Investigator of several government, industry, and foundation grants. Many of these studies have focused on developing prediction models for treating venous leg and diabetic foot ulcers, on evaluating the association of genetic and immunogenetic variation on the persistence of and risk for atopic dermatitis, as well as investigator-initiated trials using gene therapy in phase I studies to treat venous leg ulcers and diabetic foot ulcers, and recently a randomized non inferiority trial on oral therapy for acne. Finally, he has a long history of using administrative and medical record databases to improve our knowledge of dermatologic illnesses. His research has resulted in more than 300 peer reviewed research publications. He is a member of the Association of American Physicians. He has mentored dozens of dermatologists who have become excellent dermatoepidemiologists. Many of his mentees currently hold faculty positions in dermatology departments and have made impactful discovers that have advanced our knowledge of skin disease.