Prof Molly Stevens

Biography

• Bionanomaterials for regenerative medicine and sensing
• Bone and Cartilage Tissue Engineering
• Bioresponsive peptide functionalised inorganic nanoparticles
• Peptide Synthesis and Purification
• Cell culture facilities
• Live cell micro-Raman Spectroscopy

Research Interests

Molly Stevens is currently Professor of Biomedical Materials and Regenerative Medicine and the Research Director for Biomedical Material Sciences in the Institute of Biomedical Engineering. She joined Imperial in 2004 after a Postdoctoral training in the field of tissue engineering with Professor Robert Langer in the Chemical Engineering Department at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). Prior to this she graduated from Bath University with a first class honours degree in Pharmaceutical Sciences and was then awarded a PhD in biophysical investigations of specific biomolecular interactions and single biomolecule mechanics from the Laboratory of Biophysics and Surface Analysis at the University of Nottingham (2000). In 2009 she was awarded the Jean Leray Award from the European Society for Biomaterials, in 2007 the prestigious Conference Science Medal from the Royal Pharmaceutical Society and in 2005 the Philip Leverhulme Prize for Engineering. She has also recently been recognised by the TR100, a compilation of the top innovators, under the age of 35, who are transforming technology - and the world with their work. Her previous awards include the Ronald Belcher Memorial Lecture Award from the Royal Society of Chemistry (2000) and both the Janssen Prize and the UpJohn Prize for academic excellence and research.
She has a large and extremely multidisciplinary research group of students and postdocs/fellows. Research in regenerative medicine within her group includes the directed differentiation of stem cells, the design of novel bioactive scaffolds and new approaches towards tissue regeneration. She has developed novel approaches to tissue engineering that are likely to prove very powerful in the engineering of large quantities of human mature bone for autologous transplantation as well as other vital organs such as liver and pancreas, which have proven elusive with other approaches. This has led to moves to commercialise the technology (she is the co-founder of BioCeramic Therapeutics and InTiGen) and set-up a clinical trial for bone regeneration in humans. In the field of nanotechnology the group has current research efforts in exploiting specific biomolecular recognition and self-assembly mechanisms to create new dynamic nano-materials, biosensors and drug delivery systems.

Awards

•  Jean Leray Award, European Society for Biomaterials, 2009
• Tissue and Cell Engineering Society Young Investigator Award, Tissue and Cell Engineering Society (TCES), 2007
• Science Medal, Royal Pharmaceutical Society of Great Britain, 2006
• Philip Leverhulme Prize, Leverhulme Trust, 2005
• TR100 (Top 100 Young Innovators), Technology Review, 2004
• Ronald Belcher Memorial Lecture Award, Royal Society of Chemistry, 2000
• Upjohn Award, Upjohn Pharmaceuticals, 1996
• Janssen Prize, University of Bath, 1995
• Membership of Professional Bodies
• Member of the Royal Pharmaceutical Society, MRPharmS
• Member of the Institute of Materials, IOM
• Member of the Academy of Pharmaceutical Scientists, APSGB
• Royal Society of Chemistry, Member
• United Kingdom Society for Biomaterials (UKSB), Council Member
• Materials Research Society, Member
• London Technology Network, Advisory Board Member
• Other Significant Activities
• European Editor, Journal of Experimental Nanoscience
• Advisory Board Member, Journal of Regenerative Medicine
• Advisory Board Member, Biomedical Materials: Materials for Tissue Engineering and Regenerative Medicine

Biography

• 2004  -present :   Reader and Research Director for Biomedical Materials (Department of Materials  and Institute for Biomedical Engineering , Imperial college, London)
•  2001- 2004  Postdoctoral Fellow, (with Bob Langer) MIT
• 1997 - 2000  Ph.D. (University of Nottingham ) 
• 1995    BPharm First class honours  Pharmaceutical Sciences  (University of  Bath)

Recent News/Press Releases

• Molly Stevens shares THES award. At the Times Higher Education Awards (THES) Banquet on 15th October 2009, IBE won the 2009 Award for Outstanding Contribution to Innovation and Technology. This is out of 670 UK Institutions and the only award to Imperial. Professor Molly Stevens (a joint appointment with IBE) was there with her IBE colleagues to accept the award
• December 2007. Dr Molly Stevens awarded highly competitive £1.3 million ERC Young Investigator grant.
• September 2007. Dr Molly Stevens wins Tissue and Cell Engineering Society Young Investigator Award.
• July 2007. Dr Molly Stevens wins Science Medal from the Royal Pharmaceutical Society for her work in regenerative medicine, nanotechnology and tissue transplantation.
• February 2007. BioCeramic Therapeutics Ltd, a spin-out company from Imperial College and co-founded by Dr Molly Stevens and Professor Robert Hill, receives its first financing round. This funding will enable the company to press forward with its plans to develop a range of products (bioceramics and nanostructured scaffolds) designed to help patients suffering from musculoskeletal conditions.

• July 2006. Dr Molly Stevens has won one of six national new EPSRC 'Challenging Engineering' awards worth about one million pounds each. The awards are aimed at identifying and supporting future international leaders in engineering.
• November 2005. Dr Stevens' interview on the Science Show with Robyn Williams.
• November 2005.Young researcher wins sought-after prize to pursue research.Imperial Press Release and The Leverhulme Trust.
• July 2005. Transplant surgery revolutionised as scientists grow bone tissue inside body. [Article in Science and The Independent newspaper and New Zealand Herald and Newswise and Exploration]. Radio interviews on 5 Live, BBC, Capital FM.
• October 2004. CNN film and air a special report on the research ongoing in the Stevens group. [Explorers: special report on how technology, science and invention are shaping your world].  
• 23 September 2004. Nanotechnology news in brief. [Link]
• 20 September 2004. Molly Stevens has been named in the list of 100 top young innovators (TR100 2004) compiled by Technology Review magazine. Imperial press release and TR100 website.
• 1 August 2004. Bone repair may use PUs: orthopaedic uses of biodegradable medical PU investigated.(polyurethanes)(PolyNovo Biomaterials Pty Ltd. join forces with Imperial College of London). [Link].
• 18 February 2004. Bionic cat that inspired a £1 million programme. [Imperial press release]

*** Postdoctoral positions available in  Peptide-functionalised Nanoparticles for Biosensing  and in Novel Polymer-Peptide Nanofibres to Influence Cell Differentiation.
For PhD positions in Tissue Engineering and Nanomaterials/Bio-Nanotechnology for Oct 2008 - projects are tailored to the individuals interests and skills, please contact m.stevensimperial.ac.uk for details.***

Recent Journal Articles

• Srisa-Art, M, Bonzani, IC, Williams, A, et al , Identification of rare progenitor cells from human periosteal tissue using droplet microfluidics, ANALYST, 2009, Vol: 134, Pages: 2239 - 2245, ISSN: 0003-2654
• Kuna, JJ, Voitchovsky, K, Singh, C, et al , The effect of nanometre-scale structure on interfacial energy, NAT MATER, 2009, Vol: 8, Pages: 837 - 842, ISSN: 1476-1122
• Evans, ND, Minelli, C, Gentleman, E, et al , Substrate stiffness affects early differentiation events in embryonic stem cells., Eur Cell Mater, 2009, Vol: 18, ISSN: 1473-2262 ( publication )
• Ji, LJ, Stevens, MM, Zhu, YF, et al , Preparation and properties of multi-walled carbon nanotube/carbon/polystyrene composites, CARBON, 2009, Vol: 47, Pages: 2733 - 2741, ISSN: 0008-6223
• Gentleman, E, Swain, RJ, Evans, ND, et al , Comparative materials differences revealed in engineered bone as a function of cell-specific differentiation., Nat Mater, 2009, Vol: 8, Pages: 763 - 770, ISSN: 1476-1122 ( publication )
• Stevens, MM, Toxicology: Testing in the third dimension., Nat Nanotechnol, 2009, Vol: 4, Pages: 342 - 343, ISSN: 1748-3395 ( publication )
• Place, ES, Evans, ND, Stevens, MM, Complexity in biomaterials for tissue engineering., Nat Mater, 2009, Vol: 8, Pages: 457 - 470, ISSN: 1476-1122 ( publication )
• Place, ES, George, JH, Williams, CK, et al , Synthetic polymer scaffolds for tissue engineering, CHEM SOC REV, 2009, Vol: 38, Pages: 1139 - 1151, ISSN: 0306-0012
• Tsigkou, O, Jones, JR, Polak, JM, et al , Differentiation of fetal osteoblasts and formation of mineralized bone nodules by 45S5 Bioglass conditioned medium in the absence of osteogenic supplements., Biomaterials, 2009, Vol: 30, Pages: 3542 - 3550, ISSN: 1878-5905 ( publication )

• Tang, M, White, AJP, Stevens, MM, et al , Biomaterials from sugars: ring-opening polymerization of a carbohydrate lactone, CHEM COMMUN, 2009, Pages: 941 - 943, ISSN: 1359-7345
• Ghadiali, JE, Stevens, MM, Enzyme-Responsive Nanoparticle Systems, ADV MATER, 2008, Vol: 20, Pages: 4359 - 4363, ISSN: 0935-9648
  Swain, RJ, Kemp, SJ, Goldstraw, P, et al , Spectral Monitoring of Surfactant Clearance during Alveolar Epithelial Type II Cell Differentiation, BIOPHYS J, 2008, Vol: 95, Pages: 5978 - 5987, ISSN: 0006-3495
• Verdejo, R, Jell, G, Safinia, L, et al , Reactive polyurethane carbon nanotube foams and their interactions with osteoblasts, J BIOMED MATER RES A, 2009, Vol: 88A, Pages: 65 - 73, ISSN: 1549-3296
• de Mel, A, Jell, G, Stevens, MM, et al , Biofunctionalization of Biomaterials for Accelerated in Situ Endothelialization: A Review, BIOMACROMOLECULES, 2008, Vol: 9, Pages: 2969 - 2979, ISSN: 1525-7797
• Schaeffer, N, Tan, B, Dickinson, C, et al , Fluorescent or not? Size-dependent fluorescence switching for polymer-stabilized gold clusters in the 1.1-1.7 nm size range, CHEM COMMUN, 2008, Pages: 3986 - 3988, ISSN: 1359-7345
• Tang, M, Haider, AF, Minelli, C, et al , Lactide polymerization co-initiated by carbohydrate esters and pyranoses, J POLYM SCI POL CHEM, 2008, Vol: 46, Pages: 4352 - 4362, ISSN: 0887-624X
• Jell, G, Notingher, I, Tsigkou, O, et al , Bioactive glass-induced osteoblast differentiation: A noninvasive spectroscopic study, J BIOMED MATER RES A, 2008, Vol: 86A, Pages: 31 - 40, ISSN: 1549-3296
• Stevens, MM, Biomaterials for bone tissue engineering, MATER TODAY, 2008, Vol: 11, Pages: 18 - 25
• Jell, G, Verdejo, R, Safinia, L, et al , Carbon nanotube-enhanced polyurethane scaffolds fabricated by thermally induced phase separation, J MATER CHEM, 2008, Vol: 18, Pages: 1865 - 1872, ISSN: 0959-9428
• Swain, RJ, Jell, G, Stevens, MM, Non-invasive analysis of cell cycle dynamics in single living cells with Raman micro-spectroscopy., J Cell Biochem, 2008, Vol: 104, Pages: 1427 - 1438, ISSN: 1097-4644 ( publication )
• Lipski, AM, jaquiery, C, Choi, H, et al , Nanoscale engineering of biomaterial surfaces, ADVANCED MATERIALS, 2007, Vol: 19, Pages: 553 - +
• George, JH, Shaffer, MS, Stevens, MM, Investigating the cellular response to nanofibrous materials by use of a multi-walled carbon nanotube model, J EXP NANOSCI, 2006, Vol: 1, Pages: 1 - 12
• Swain, RJ, Stevens, MM, Raman microspectroscopy for non-invasive biochemical analysis of single cells., Biochem Soc Trans, 2007, Vol: 35, Pages: 544 - 549, ISSN: 0300-5127 ( publication )
• Laromaine, A, Koh, LL, Murugesan, M, et al , Protease-triggered dispersion of nanoparticle assemblies, J AM CHEM SOC, 2007, Vol: 129, Pages: 4156 - +, ISSN: 0002-7863
• Tsigkou, O, Hench, LL, Boccaccini, AR, et al , Enhanced differentiation and mineralization of human fetal osteoblasts on PDLLA containing Bioglass composite films in the absence of osteogenic supplements., J Biomed Mater Res A, 2007, Vol: 80, Pages: 837 - 851, ISSN: 1549-3296 ( publication )
• Jones, JR, Tsigkou, O, Coates, EE, et al , Extracellular matrix formation and mineralization on a phosphate-free porous bioactive glass scaffold using primary human osteoblast (HOB) cells., Biomaterials, 2007, Vol: 28, Pages: 1653 - 1663, ISSN: 0142-9612 ( publication )
• Mwenifumbo, S, Shaffer, MS, Stevens, MM, Exploring cellular behaviour with multi-walled carbon nanotube constructs, J MATER CHEM, 2007, Vol: 17, Pages: 1894 - 1902, ISSN: 0959-9428
• Bonzani, IC, Adhikari, R, Houshyar, S, et al , Synthesis of two-component injectable polyurethanes for bone tissue engineering., Biomaterials, 2007, Vol: 28, Pages: 423 - 433, ISSN: 0142-9612 ( publication )
• Bonzani, IC, George, JH, Stevens, MM, Novel materials for bone and cartilage regeneration., Curr Opin Chem Biol, 2006, Vol: 10, Pages: 568 - 575, ISSN: 1367-5931 ( publication )
• Jell, G, Stevens, MM, Gene activation by bioactive glasses., J Mater Sci Mater Med, 2006, Vol: 17, Pages: 997 - 1002, ISSN: 0957-4530 ( publication )
• Mart, RJ, Osborne, RD, Stevens, MM, et al , Peptide-based stimuli-responsive biomaterials, SOFT MATTER, 2006, Vol: 2, Pages: 822 - 835, ISSN: 1744-683X
• Hahn, MS, Teply, BA, Stevens, MM, et al , Collagen composite hydrogels for vocal fold lamina propria restoration, BIOMATERIALS, 2006, Vol: 27, Pages: 1104 - 1109, ISSN: 0142-9612
• Owen, CA, Selvakumaran, J, Notingher, I, et al , In vitro toxicology evaluation of pharmaceuticals using Raman micro-spectroscopy., J Cell Biochem, 2006, Vol: 99, Pages: 178 - 186, ISSN: 0730-2312 ( publication )

Chapters in books

• Stevens,M.M., Burdick,J.A., Biomedical hydrogels, In: Hench,L.L., Jones,J.R., editor, Biomaterials, artificial organs and tissue engineering, Boca Raton, Woodhead Publishing Limited, 2005, Pages: 107 - 115, ISBN: 0-8493-2577-3
• Prasad,V.P., Stevens,M.M., Polymer foams, In: Wnek,G., editor, Encyclopedia of biomaterials and biomedical engineering, New York, Dekker, 2005, Pages: 1274 - 1278, ISBN: 0-8247-5562-6
  Conference Contributions
• Azevedo, M, Jell, G, Hill, R, et al , Novel hypoxia mimicking bioactive materials for tissue engineering, Annual Tissue-Engineering-and-Regenerative-Medicine-International-Society-European-Chapter Meeting, 2008, Pages: 889 - 889
• Evans, ND, Gentleman, E, Swain, R, et al , Comparison of bone and cartilage gene expression in marrow stromal cells and embryonic stem cells during osteogenic differentiation, Annual Tissue-Engineering-and-Regenerative-Medicine-International-Society-European-Chapter Meeting, 2008, Pages: 713 - 713
• Swain, RJ, Stevens, MM, Raman microspectroscopy for non-invasive biochemical analysis of single cells, Cojnference on Bionanotechnology - From Self-Assembly to Cell Biology, 2007, Pages: 544 - 549
• Bonzani, IC, Knight, MM, Lee, DA, et al , A model for studying the influence of mechanical loading on human periosteal stem cells, Conference of the Tissue-Engineering-and-Regenerative-Medicine-International-Society (TERMIS-EU), 2007, Pages: 1636 - 1636
• Notingher, L, Jell, G, Notingher, PL, et al , Multivariate analysis of Raman spectra for in vitro non-invasive studies of living cells, 27th European Congress on Moleculaar Spectroscopy, 2005, Pages: 179 - 185, ISBN: 0022-2860
• Xu, XJ, Sy, JC, Stevens, MM, et al , Surface eroding polyesters derived from poly(alpha-hydroxy acids)., 227th ACS National Meeting, 2004, Pages: U558 - U558
• Sy,J., Xu,X., Lipski,A.M., et al , Degradation behavior of novel poly(alpha-hydroxy acid)-derived polyesters, 2004, Pages: 199 - 206, ISBN: 0272-9172
• Stevens,M.M., Langer,R.S., Marini,R.P., et al , Enhancement of periosteum derived chondrogenesis in vitro: Implications for cartilage tissue engineering, 49th annual meeting; Orthopaedic Research Society, New
• Orleans, LA, ORS, 2003, Pages: 964 - 964, ISBN: 0149-6433
  Stevens,M.M., Qanadilo,H.F., Langer,R., et al , Ionically crosslinked alginate hydrogels as scaffolds for periosteum-derived chondrogenesis, British pharmaceutical conference, Manchester, Pharmaceutical press, 2002, Pages: 187 - 187, ISBN: 0022-3573