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  2. Our Research
  3. Stephanie Willerth

Stephanie Willerth

Professor
VCH Clinical Title(s)
Canada Research Chair in Biomedical Engineering
Research Focus
Spinal Cord Injury
Degrees / Designations
SB, MS, PhD
Contact Info
willerth@uvic.ca
250-721-7303
DrWillerth
stephanie-willerth-2473587b/

Biography

Dr. Stephanie Willerth is a principal investigator at the International Collaboration On Repair Discoveries (ICORD) and a member of the Centre for Advanced Materials and Related Technology. She is a full professor and Canada Research Chair in Biomedical Engineering at the University of Victoria where she holds dual appointments in the Department of Mechanical Engineering and the Division of Medical Sciences. From 2018 to 2021, she served as the acting director of the Centre for Biomedical Research and the Biomedical Engineering Undergraduate Program at the University of Victoria. She also previously served as the president of the Canadian Biomaterials Society. She is a staff scientist at Creative Destruction Labs and serves as the CEO of Axolotl Biosciences. 

Dr. Willerth’s research program addresses the challenge and complexities of how to develop engineered tissues for replacing complex organs such as the spinal cord. These complexities include finding how to replace the variety of cell types present in tissue while also achieving the necessary arrangements of these cells. In particular, her work has focused on the use of pluripotent stem (iPS) cells, which can differentiate into any type of cell found in the body. Her research group analyzes the behaviour of stem cells inside three-dimensional biomaterial scaffolds with the goal of engineering complex tissues. Her recent efforts have focused on using 3D bioprinting to generate human models of healthy and diseased tissues.

News and Awards

3D bioprinting tissues to personalize treatments for neurological diseases

Jan 7, 2022

Publications

  • Biomolecules -

    3D Bioprinting Mesenchymal Stem Cell-Derived Neural Tissues Using a Fibrin-Based Bioink.

    Restan Perez M, Sharma R, Masri NZ, Willerth SM
  • Journal of controlled release : official journal of the Controlled Release Society -

    Recent advances in the design of microfluidic technologies for the manufacture of drug releasing particles.

    Forigua A, Kirsch RL, Willerth SM, Elvira KS
  • Biochemical and biophysical research communications -

    Novel N-cadherin antagonist causes glioblastoma cell death in a 3D bioprinted co-culture model.

    Smits IPM, Blaschuk OW, Willerth SM
  • Progress in neurobiology -

    The Use of Patient-Derived Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells for Alzheimer's Disease Modeling.

    Lee C, Willerth SM, Nygaard HB
  • Frontiers in bioengineering and biotechnology -

    3D Bioprinting Pluripotent Stem Cell Derived Neural Tissues Using a Novel Fibrin Bioink Containing Drug Releasing Microspheres.

    Sharma R, Smits IPM, De La Vega L, Lee C, Willerth SM
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