2024 Biologically-Engineered Heart Valves that Grow

‌

Professor Tranquillo received his PhD in Chemical Engineering in 1986 from the University of Pennsylvania. He was a NATO Postdoctoral Fellow at the Centre for Mathematical Biology at Oxford for one year before beginning his appointment in the Department of Chemical Engineering & Materials Science at the University of Minnesota in 1987. He served as the head of the Department of Biomedical Engineering from its inception in 2000 until 2019. Professor Tranquillo has used a combined modelling and experimental approach to understand cell behaviour, in particular, directed cell migration, and cell-matrix mechanical interactions.​

More recently, his research program has focused on the role of these cell behaviours in cardiovascular and neural tissue engineering applications with a focus on clinical translation. His research program has resulted in over 120 peer-reviewed original research publications as first or senior author, being recognized with his selection for the TERMIS-AM Senior Scientist Award in 2015. Resulting intellectual property for a cardiovascular regenerative material platform technology was licensed by Vascudyne, Inc in 2017.​

Professor Tranquillo's research has been continuously funded by NHLBI R01 grants since 1998 and major funding also currently includes a DoD CDMRP TTDA grant and Regenerative Medicine Minnesota grant. He currently also co-directs an NHLBI T32 cardiovascular engineering training program. Professor Tranquillo is a Fellow of the American Institute of Medical and Biological Engineering, International Academy of Medical and Biological Engineering, and the Biomedical Engineering Society, and he is also a Distinguished McKnight University Professor.