Derek Hernandez

Graduate Student
Chemical Engineering
(Co-advised by Jason Shear, Chemistry)

BME 4.410
Phone: 512-471-1986
E-mail: derekh@che.utexas.edu

Years joined lab: 2008

Education

B.S. in Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering from the University of North Carolina State

Research

The understanding of cell behavior is a complex concept that involves a combination of chemical and mechanical stimuli which are recognized and integrated by the cell to produce a response. I aim to develop an HA-based scaffold which exhibits instructive chemical and mechanical cues to control cellular processes such as neuronal guidance and scaffold organization in 3-dimensions. This research will provide a critical understanding of cell-material interaction phenomena and could potentially serve as a model construct for nerve regeneration.