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Benjamin Wu, DDS, PhD
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Associate Professor:
Co-Director:
- Weintraub Center for Reconstructive Biotechnology, UCLA School of Dentistry
Vice Chair:
- Department of Bioengineering
- Biomedical Engineering Interdepartmental Program
Associate Member:
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Contact Info:
The Weintraub Center for Reconstructive Biotechnology
UCLA School of Dentistry
Box 951668, CHS B3-087
Los Angeles, CA 90095-1668
Email: benwu@ucla.edu
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Benjamin Wu, DDS, PhD, is Vice Chair of the Department of Bioengineering, with multiple joint appointments in the Department of Materials Science and Engineering, and in the School of Dentistry. Benefiting from his unique perspective as a practicing prosthodontist and bioengineer, his research brings to bear modern bioengineering tools to solve clinical problems. Specifically, his lab aims to: 1) learn how nature heals wounds and tissue defects; 2) copy nature and engineer biomimetic microenvironments to promote repair; and 3) investigate the molecular mechanisms by which progenitor cells interact with the engineered microenvironments. His team reported in Nature Biotechnology that microenvironment alone, without the addition of expensive and exotic biochemicals, can stimulate adipose-derived and marrow-derived progenitor cells to differentiate into bone-forming cells and restore large, critical-size bony defects. This novel finding has motivated intense efforts to establish the molecular understanding by which minute changes in microenvironment regulate cell fate. Other exciting biomimetic strategies involves the engineering of the optimal microenvironment to deliver proteins that are naturally expressed during human bone formation; and the engineering of biomimetic surfaces to facilitate spinal cord repair. His biomimetic approach, coupled with modern bioengineering tools and molecular techniques, are fundamentally important in many cutting edge disciplines, and is reflected by Dr. Wu’s active roles as Co-Director of the Weintraub Center, Member of the UCLA Brain Research Institute, and Affiliate of the California Nanosystems Institute.
Quote:
"“The Weintraub Center provides an exciting interdisciplinary environment to address highly complex, clinically relevant problems.”"
Areas of Research:
- Biomaterials design, processing, and characterization
- Cell-material interactions
- Biomedical devices and materials
- Biomineralization
- Stem cells in regenerative medicine and tissue engineering
- 3D fabrication and advanced rapid prototyping
Recent Publications:
- Rodriguez LV, Alfonso Z, Zhang R, Leung J, Wu BM, Ignarro LJ. Clonogenic multipotent stem cells in human adipose tissue differentiate into functional smooth muscle cells. PNAS, 103 (32) 12167-12172, 2006.
- Dunn JCY, Wu BM. Tissue Engineering of Intestine. Encyclopedia of Biomaterials and Biomedical Engineering, pp 1-7, 2006.
- Hagerman EM, Chao SHH, Dunn JCY, Wu BM. Initial Adhesion Events for IEC-6: Signal transduction, cell spreading, and cell adhesion strength. J. Biomed Materials Res, 76A(2) 272-278, 2006.
- Cowan CM, Cheng S, Ting K, Soo C, Walder B, Wu BM, Kuroda S, Zhang X. Nell-1 induced bone formation within the distracted intermaxillary suture. Bone, 38(1):48-58; 2006.
- Petrigliano FA, McAllister MD, Wu BM. Tissue Engineering of the Anterior Cruciate Ligament: A Review of Current Strategies. Arthroscopy, 22(4) 441-451, 2006.
- Ho W, Tawil B, Dunn JCY, Wu BM. The Behavior of Human Mesenchymal Stem Cells In 3D Fibrin Clots: Dependence on Fibrinogen Concentration and Clot Structure. Tissue Engineering, 12(6) 1- 9, 2006.
- Dunn JCY, Chan WY, Cristini V, Kim JS, Lowengrub J, Singha S, Wu BM. Analysis of Cell Growth in Three-Dimensional Scaffolds. Tissue Engineering, 12:705-16, 2006.
- Chou, YF, Dunn JCY, Wu BM. In vitro response of MC3T3-E1 preosteoblasts within three-dimensional apatite-coated PLGA scaffolds. J Biomed Materials Research, 75B(1), 81–90, 2005.
- Lee M, Dunn JCY, Wu BM. Scaffold Fabrication by Indirect 3D Printing. Biomaterials, 26(20):4281–4289, 2005.
- Cowan CM, Alami OO, Shi S, Chou YF, Marie C, Thomas R, Wu BM, Longaker MT. Bone Morphogenetic Protein-2 and Retinoic Acid Accelerates In Vivo Bone Formation, Osteoclast Recruitment and Bone Turnover. Tissue Engineering, 11(3-4):645–658, 2005.
- Brown DA, Chou YF, Lam M, Beygui RE, Dunn JYC, Wu BM. Gelatin embedding cell-polymer constructs for frozen sections. J Biomedical Materials Research, 72B: 79-85, 2005.
- Cowan CM, Soo C, Ting K, Wu BM. Evolving Concepts in Bone Tissue Engineering. Current Topics in Developmental Biology, 2004 Volume 66, Chapter 8. Edited by Gerald P. Schatten.
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