COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY • DEPARTMENT OF
Physiology and Cellular Biophysics

CURRENT RESEARCH

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The Woappi lab for Synthetic Regeneration and Systems Physiology aims to understand how varied cells mediate restoration of damaged tissue, with the goal of leveraging this insight to develop novel treatments for large-scale tissue injuries. We study tissue as a system and develop gene-editing tools and synthetic biotechnologies, along with 3D skin culture systems, to delineate the genetic, epigenetic, and biophysical events orchestrating distinct cells towards restoration of tissue. Our laboratory has three major research interests: 1) Defining the biophysical mediators of wound healing by developing microphysiological systems (MPS) of wound mimicry, 2) Developing synthetic biotechnologies to examine the regeneration potential of mammalian tissue,
3) Characterizing the immunological responses to wound injury. 

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Wound Physiology

Our research established the human skinoid culture system, which enables spatiotemporal modeling of human tissue reconstruction ex vivo. We are furthering this work by creating microphysiological systems mimicking human wound healing and using these platforms to model the cellular heterogeneity of tissue healing .

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Synthetic Regeneration 

Our team is motivated to define the molecular, genetic, and epigenetic events enabling heterogenous cells to orchestrate restoration of damaged tissue. We are developing novel synthetic biotechnologies to functionally dissect the role of specific cell populations in tissue maintenance, neoplasia, and wound healing. 

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Systems Immunology of Wounds 

Our research seeks to understand how localized immune cells enable proximal and distal orchestration of tissue stem cells to a healing state. Our group employs quantitative systems biology to uncover novel immune contributions to tissue healing. We leverage this insight to develop synthetic immunosurveillance systems (S.I.S) with prophylactic and therapeutic potentials for wound patients.