Padma Rajagopalan

Rajagopalan is the Director of CTE. Her research focuses on the development of model tissue constructs or functional tissue units and the study of cell-substratum interactions. A primary goal of her research group is to design tissue constructs that mimic the native structure of tissues in vivo and to systematically probe cellular response to a variety of cues. This involves the fabrication of biocompatible scaffolds and templates, and more importantly tailoring surface and bulk properties. Another research interest of her group is to quantify cell-substratum interactions. Specifically, the group’s studies focus on how chemical and mechanical properties of an underlying substratum affect cellular motility and contractility. She collaborates with CTE faculty to develop computational models to predict tissue function, for example, to understand basic liver biology and to study the toxic effects of environmental chemicals on the liver.