Georgia Papavasiliou, Ph.D.

Assistant Professor

Office: Wishnick Hall, Room 222
Wishnick Hall, Suite 314
3255 S Dearborn St
Chicago, IL 60616-3793

Phone: 312.567.5959
Fax: 312.567.5707
Email: papavasiliou@iit.edu
Web:

Expertise

Tissue engineering, cell biomaterial interactions, polymer reaction engineering, computational modeling of branched and crosslinked polymer systems

Education

B.S., Chemical Engineering, Illinois Institute of Technology, 1996
Ph.D., Chemical Engineering, Illinois Institute of Technology, 2003

Research

Our research focuses on the coupling of computational models of hydrogel formation and experimental design for the synthesis of hydrogel nanoparticle delivery vehicles and the fabrication of synthetic hydrogel extracellular matrix analogues with tunable degradation rates, incorporated biofunctionality, and mechanical properties for guiding cell behavior and tissue regeneration. We hypothesize that dynamic kinetic models of polymerization and gelation provide a bottom-up engineering approach to effectively guide in the experimental design and optimization of biomaterial properties for regenerative medicine applications.

Current Research Projects

Quantitative analysis of the effects of biofunctional and physical gradients on endothelial cell behavior in poly(ethylene glycol) diacrylate hydrogels
Independent tuning of matrix properties for controlled invasion and vessel formation within matrix metalloproteinase-sensitive PEG hydrogels
Effects of growth factor loaded PEG nanoparticles on cell invasion and vascularization within synthetic PEG ECM analogues
Crosslinked PEG nanoparticles for sustained delivery of phosphate ions to the intestinal mucosa
Computational modeling of hydrogel crosslinking via free-radical photopolymerization for the prediction of PEG ECM analogue biomaterial properties

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Research Funding
NIH R21 (HL094916-01A1) ERIF Pritzker Institute of Biomedical Science and Engineering

Current Projects

Awards/Honors

IIT Research Fellow, 1996
AIChE Chicago Section McCormick Award Recipient, 1996
University Excellence in Teaching Award, IIT, 1998
W.M. Langdon Excellence in Chemical Engineering Teaching Award, IIT, 1998
University Excellence in Teaching Award-Illinois Institute of Technology, 2012
Tissue Engineering and Regenerative Medicine Society, 2nd Place Graduate Student Research Poster Competition, Houston Texas, December 2012

Patents

Books

Selected Publications

Peer Reviewed Publications

Sokic S, Larson JC, Larkin S, Papavasiliou G, Holmes T, Brey EM. Label-Free Nondestructive Imaging of Vascular Network Structure in 3D Culture. Microvascular Research (in revision)

Lee C, Teymour F, Camastral H, Tirreli N, Hubbell JA, Elbert DL, Papavasiliou G. Characterization of the Network Structure of PEG-diacrylate Hydrogels Formed in the Presence of Vinyl Pyrrolidone (in preparation)

Turturro MV, Christenson MC, Larson JC, Young DA, Brey EM, Papavasiliou G. MMP-Sensitive PEG Diacrylate Hydrogels with Spatial Variations in Matrix Properties Stimulate Directional Vascular Sprout Formation. PLoS ONE. 8(3):e58897;2013

Turturro MV, Sokic S, Larson JC and Papavasiliou G. Effective Tuning of Ligand Incorporation and Mechanical Properties in Visible Light Photopolymerized Poly(ethylene glycol) Diacrylate Hydrogels Dictates Cell Adhesion and Proliferation. Biomedical Materials. 8(2): 25001-25012, 2013.

Turturro MV, Vélez Rendón DM, Teymour F, Papavasiliou G. A Kinetic Investigation of PEG Hydrogel Formation via Perfusion Based Frontal Photopolymerization: Influence of Free Radical Polymerization Conditions on Frontal Velocity and Swelling Gradients. Macromolecular Reaction Engineering. 7(2): 107-115, 2013
(Featured in Cover)

Sokic S, Papavasiliou G. Controlled Proteolytic Cleavage Site Presentation in Biomimetic PEGDA Hydrogels Enhances Neovascularization In Vitro. Tissue Engineering Part A. 18(23-24):2477-2486, 2012

Sokic S, Papavasiliou G. FGF-1 and Proteolytically-mediated Cleavage Site Presentation Influence 3D Fibroblast Invasion in Biomimetic PEGDA Hydrogels. Acta Biomaterialia. 8(6):2213-2222, 2012

Turturro MV, Papavasiliou G. Generation of Mechanical and Biofunctional Gradients in PEG Diacrylate Hydrogels by Perfusion-Based Frontal Photopolymerization. Journal of Biomaterials Science Polymer Edition. 23(7): 917–939, 2012

Papavasiliou G, Cheng MH, Brey EM. Strategies for Vascularization of Polymer Scaffolds. Journal of Investigative Medicine. 58(7): 838-844, 2010

Papavasiliou G, Songprawat P, Pérez-Luna VH, Hammes EA, Morris M, and Brey EM. Three Dimensional Patterning in Poly(ethylene glycol) Hydrogels Through Surface Initiated Photopolymerization. Tissue Engineering Part C: Methods. 14(2): 129-140, 2008

Kizilel S, Papavasiliou G, Gossage J, Teymour F. Mathematical Model for Vinyl Divinyl Polymerization. Macromolecular Reaction Engineering. 1(3): 587-603, 2007

PhD Publications

Papavasiliou G, Teymour F. Bifurcation Analysis of Non-isothermal Nonlinear Polymerization. Industrial & Engineering Chemistry Research. 44(8): 2754-2766, 2005

Papavasiliou G, Teymour F. Reconstruction of the Chain Length Distribution for Vinyl Divinyl Copolymerization Using the Numerical Fractionation Technique. Macromolecular Theory & Simulations. 12(8): 543-548, 2003

Papavasiliou G, Birol I, Teymour F. Calculation of Molecular Weight Distributions in Non-linear Free-Radical Polymerization Using the Numerical Fractionation Technique. Macromolecular Theory and Simulations. 11(5): 533-548, 2002

Undergraduate Publications

Shao S, Papavasiliou G, and Arastoopour, H. Laser Doppler Anemometry (LDA) Diagnostics of the Two Phase Flow Parameters in a Liquid-Gas Two-Phase Flow System. AIChE Symposium Series, Advances in Fluidization and Fluid Particle Systems. 93( 317): 7-11, 1997.

Book Chapters

Georgia Papavasiliou. Gradient Scaffolds for Vascularized Tissue Formation. In Vascularization: Regenerative Medicine and Tissue Engineering. CRC Press (In Preparation)

Papavasiliou G, Sokic S, Turturro MV. Synthetic PEG Hydrogels as Extracellular Matrix Mimics for Tissue Engineering Applications. Biotechnology/Book 3, Reda Sammour (Ed.). ISBN 979-953-307-738-2, InTech, 2011

Papavasiliou G, Teymour F. Nonlinear Dynamics in Continuous Stirred Tank Reactor Polymerization. Chap. 24, in Nonlinear Dynamics in Polymeric Systems, edited by John A. Pojman and Qui Tran-Cong-Miyata. Vol 869: 309-323. Washington, DC: American Chemical Society, 2004