Study level
PhD
Master of Philosophy
Honours
Vacation research experience scheme
Faculty/School
Science and Engineering Faculty
Topic status
We're looking for students to study this topic.
Supervisors
- Position
- Professor
- Division / Faculty
- Science and Engineering Faculty
Overview
Hydrogels provide a hydrated, extracellular, matrix-like environment that allow for the culturing and study of cells. However, hydrogels are typically soft and fragile, which limits their potential for load-bearing applications such as cartilage tissue engineering.
This project aims to improve the mechanical properties of hydrogels for tissue engineering using a range of experimental and theoretical approaches.
Research activities
The project will involve laboratory work, including:
- synthesising and characterising hydrogel materials
- crosslinking hydrogels
- mechanical testing
- 3D-cell culture
- molecular analyses
- histology and immunohistochemistry.
Outcomes
Ultimately, this project aims to deliver hydrogels with better mechanical properties that are suitable for load-bearing tissue engineering applications.
Skills and experience
We're looking for enthusiastic students with a background in any of the following disciplines:
- mechanical engineering
- biomedical engineering
- materials science.
Familiarity with biomaterials, computational modeling techniques, and polymer chemistry will be helpful for this project.
Scholarships
You may be able to apply for a research scholarship in our annual scholarship round.
Keywords
Contact
Contact the supervisor for more information.