With $500,000 NSF grant, researcher to examine 'Lego' design for polymers
The National Science Foundation awarded The University of Akron assistant professor of polymer science, Dr. Abraham Joy with its prestigious Faculty Early Career Development (CAREER) Award. Dr. Joy will use the funding to develop and evaluate a novel polyester system for biomedical uses.
Dr. Joy’s five-year study will explore how the polyester system’s new modular, or “Lego,” design can be adapted for various applications, including drug/protein delivery and their potential use as antimicrobials. Part of Dr. Joy’s research will involve examining several multifunctional polymers for their effective use in developing bone cells from stem cells.
“This synthetic polyester platform with ‘peptide-like’ pendant functional groups is designed to bridge the performance gap between natural and synthetic polymers used in several biomedical applications. This funding from NSF will enable us to evaluate and tailor this design hypothesis,” Dr. Joy says.
The NSF presents CAREER Awards to “junior faculty who exemplify the role of teacher-scholars through outstanding research, excellent education and the integration of education and research within the context of the mission of their organizations.”
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Media contact: Denise Henry, 330-972-6477 or henryd@uakron.edu.
Dr. Abraham Joy