Research Program at the Lee Lab
Biomimetic Interfacial Nanomaterials
The primary goal of my research program is to create precisely defined, bioinspired nanomaterials that can be used for studying complex interfacial phenomena and as functional materials, devices, and therapeutics. In my research group, we are particularly inspired by how nature manages complex interactions at interfaces and self-assembles functional bionanomaterials. Therefore, we use bioengineering approaches to both study and mimic these processes. Specifically, we use genetic engineering techniques to design novel peptides/proteins or viruses/cells and then use them to create functional nanostructures for regenerative medicine, therapeutics, biosensing, biomining, and energy generation. Through our research, we would like to address the following questions (click the links to learn more):
- Protein-Protein Interfaces: How do proteins interact to create exquisite, hierarchical structures with diverse functions in a spatially and temporally controlled manner from simple nanofibrous building blocks?
- Protein-Cellular Interfaces: How can protein-based material interfaces be tuned to create physical, chemical, and mechanical structures that can direct cell behavior for regenerative medicines and therapeutics?
- Protein-Organic Material / Protein-Inorganic Material Interfaces: How can proteins be engineered to recognize specific target organic/inorganic molecules for the development of biosensors or to template the growth of inorganic materials?
- Protein-Electronic Interfaces: How can the dipole of protein sequences and structures be engineered to interchange between electric and mechanical forces for the generation of clean protein-based piezoelectric, pyroelectric, triboelectric energy?
Figure 1. Schematic illustration of our biomimetic self-templating assembly process using phage as collagen-like helical nanofibers. The work is based on our ongoing research and was chosen as one of twelve highlights in President Obama’s National Science Foundation Report for US Congress (2014) entitled ‘Manufacturing Goes Viral’.