Hasini Kanthi Email and Phone Number

I have been fortunate to work under the Ashutosh Chilkoti lab at Duke University this summer to enhance my biomedical engineering knowledge. My lab project, under my mentor Rachael Putman, focuses on regenerative medicine. Matrigel is a gel-like substance from mouse tumor cells used to grow cells in labs. It's useful for cancer research, stem cell studies, and tissue engineering. However, Matrigel has problems concerning consistency. It is necessary to develop a reliable synthetic substrate that can offer reproducibility, controllability, and biocompatibility, thus addressing the limitations associated with Matrigel. A promising protein is partially ordered polypeptides (POPs). These are proteins with both structured and flexible parts. POPs can form stable scaffolds at body temperature and are compatible with human biology. This lab's end goal is to prove stem cell growth and direct development; POPs can help with this.

I am so glad to announce that I will be a fellow for the Global Citizens Initiative and attend the summit in Scotland, followed by the 10-month fellowship under a GCI mentor! I cannot wait to see how this program pushes me to become a better leader and individual.

An ingenious, sustainable innovation that identifies a diagnosis of chronic kidney disease in underserved populations. This pioneering technology integrates protein strip biosensors with acid-base analytical indicators, including tetrabromophenol blue, into urinalysis cups to ascertain pH levels linked to kidney pathologies. As proteins can portend the progression of diabetes-associated nephropathy, this invention leverages urinary protein detection to identify the early onset of chronic kidney disease in users. The diagnostic tool distinctly targets third-world nations where diabetes has climbed, empowering impoverished communities through innovation. My team and I have run this innovation through the Lemelson-MIT Grant and the Conrad Challenge as finalists for both programs.

Helping to cultivate young minds through learning experiences in mathematics and reading!

I interned under quantum computing scientist Professor Emma Steinebronn from Penn State, with whom I helped develop a research paper that analyzes quantum phenomena in topological thin films (surfaces that exhibit unusual materialistic properties).

I was the Head Organizer of TEDxCarnageMagnetMS, the first-ever TEDx event at the middle school level in North Carolina! Having this role taught me many skills, such as leadership, public speaking, organization, and time management. We ran a successful event with many attendees for our TEDx speakers!