Sharon Gerecht

Gerecht

Paul M. Gross Distinguished Professor

Gerecht’s research group studies how the microenvironment regulates cellular responses, with the long-term goal of developing countermeasures and therapeutics. We develop biomaterials and culture systems to emulate mechanical and physical stressors toward understanding tissue function, reliance, and homeostasis. We also use that information to uncover pathways in injury and disease development to guide tissue healing and regeneration. We focus on blood vessels and their multifaceted roles in tissue performance, aging, and disease. 

Appointments and Affiliations

  • Paul M. Gross Distinguished Professor
  • Professor of Biomedical Engineering
  • Associate Dean for Research and Infrastructure in the Pratt School of Engineering
  • Member of the Duke Cancer Institute

Contact Information

Education

  • Ph.D. Israel Institute of Technology (Israel), 2004

Research Interests

stem cells, biomaterials, hypoxia, blood vessels, physics of cancer, regenerative medicine

Awards, Honors, and Distinctions

  • Fellow. American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS). 2020
  • Member. National Academy of Inventors. 2020
  • Member. National Academy of Medicine. 2019
  • Invitee. Inaugural 2019 NAM Emerging Leaders Forum. 2019
  • Recipient. Patrick C. Walsh Prostate Cancer Research Fund. 2017
  • Fellow. American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering (AIBME). 2016
  • Inaugural President's Frontier Award. Johns Hopkins University. 2015
  • National Established Investigator Award. American Heart Association. 2015
  • Scholar. Inaugural Kent Gordon Croft Investment Management Faculty Scholar. 2015
  • Heart Award. W.W. Smith Charitable Trust. 2014
  • CAREER Award. National Science Foundation (NSF). 2011
  • Basil O’Connor Starter Scholar Research Award. March of Dimes Foundation. 2009
  • Junior Investigator Award. North American Vascular Biology Organization (NAVBO). 2009
  • Allan C. Davis Medal, Outstanding Young Engineering Award. Maryland Academy of Sciences. 2008
  • National Scientist Development Award. American Heart Association. 2008

Courses Taught

  • BME 493: Projects in Biomedical Engineering (GE)
  • BME 644: Physiology for Engineers
  • BME 791: Graduate Independent Study
  • BME 792: Continuation of Graduate Independent Study

In the News

Representative Publications

  • Volkova, E; Procell, L; Kong, L; Santhanam, L; Gerecht, S, Vascular stiffening in aging females with a hypertension-induced HIF2A gain-of-function mutation., Bioengineering and Translational Medicine, vol 8 no. 2 (2023) [10.1002/btm2.10403] [abs].
  • Warren, E; Gerecht, S, BEYOND THE ENDOTHELIUM: THE ROLE OF MURAL CELLS IN VASCULAR BIOLOGY: In vitro systems to study endothelial/pericyte cell interactions., Vascular Biology (Bristol, England), vol 5 no. 1 (2023) [10.1530/vb-22-0021] [abs].
  • Chavez, T; Gerecht, S, Engineering of the microenvironment to accelerate vascular regeneration., Trends in Molecular Medicine, vol 29 no. 1 (2023), pp. 35-47 [10.1016/j.molmed.2022.10.005] [abs].
  • Bokhari, RS; Beheshti, A; Blutt, SE; Bowles, DE; Brenner, D; Britton, R; Bronk, L; Cao, X; Chatterjee, A; Clay, DE; Courtney, C; Fox, DT; Gaber, MW; Gerecht, S; Grabham, P; Grosshans, D; Guan, F; Jezuit, EA; Kirsch, DG; Liu, Z; Maletic-Savatic, M; Miller, KM; Montague, RA; Nagpal, P; Osenberg, S; Parkitny, L; Pierce, NA; Porada, C; Rosenberg, SM; Sargunas, P; Sharma, S; Spangler, J; Tavakol, DN; Thomas, D; Vunjak-Novakovic, G; Wang, C; Whitcomb, L; Young, DW; Donoviel, D, Looking on the horizon; potential and unique approaches to developing radiation countermeasures for deep space travel., Life Sci Space Res (Amst), vol 35 (2022), pp. 105-112 [10.1016/j.lssr.2022.08.003] [abs].
  • Elliott, MB; Matsushita, H; Shen, J; Yi, J; Inoue, T; Brady, T; Santhanam, L; Mao, H-Q; Hibino, N; Gerecht, S, Off-the-shelf, heparinized small diameter vascular graft limits acute thrombogenicity in a porcine model., Acta Biomaterialia, vol 151 (2022), pp. 134-147 [10.1016/j.actbio.2022.07.061] [abs].