I am very pleased to announce that Dr. Tao Jiang, CICATS Investigator Advocate and Assistant Professor of Medicine, has been appointed to the faculty of the Institute for Regenerative Engineering. Dr. Jiang received a B.S. in Chemical Engineering in 1999 and an M.S. in Materials Science in 2001, both from Tsinghua University in Beijing.
He then went on to pursue his doctoral degree and received a Ph.D. in chemical engineering from the University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA. His doctoral research, under my supervision, focused on the design, development, and evaluation of novel hybrid scaffolds from natural polymer chitosan and synthetic polymer PLGA for bone-tissue engineering.
Dr. Jiang joined Zimmer, Inc., one of the world’s leading medical device companies, as a senior research scientist immediately after obtaining his Ph.D. At Zimmer, he played a variety of leading roles in evaluating and exploring cutting-edge technologies for the regeneration of musculoskeletal tissues including bone, cartilage, ligament, and tendon. In addition, he played a key role in developing Chondrofix Allograft for cartilage repair. Fully launched in the U.S. in 2011, it was the first Zimmer biological product developed in-house.
Dr. Jiang has over 20 peer-reviewed publications in journals such as Biomaterials, Journal of Biomedical Materials Research, Acta Biomaterialia, and PNAS, as well as many conference presentations. He has six issued/pending patents and invention disclosures.
At the University of Virginia, Dr. Jiang was awarded the 2008 Faculty Award for Excellence in Doctoral Studies. At Zimmer, he received a Zimmer Publication Award from the chief scientific officer and a Zimmer Impact Award from the company.
Dr. Jiang serves as a peer reviewer for a number of high-impact scientific journals including Biomaterials, Carbohydrate Polymers, and Materials Science and Engineering.
Dr. Jiang’s research interests include advanced biomaterials, drug delivery, tissue engineering, and therapies for musculoskeletal diseases.
Speaking for all of the Institute faculty, we are excited to have him join us, and we look forward to working with our newest faculty colleague.