Rafael D. Gonzalez-Cruz, Ph.D. Email & Phone Number

Providence, Ri, Us

Providence, Rhode Island, Us

(1) Study of traumatic brain injury in vitro using 3D neural microtissues by assessing TBI biomarker temporal profiles as a function of strain and strain rate(2) Study of reactive astrogliosis and neuroinflammation in vitro TBI models as a function of strain and strain rate(3) Early stage development of pulmonary artery-inspired, tunable stiffness biomaterials for studying pulmonary hypertension in vitro

Providence, Rhode Island, Us

Studying traumatic brain injury in vitro using 3D neural spheroid cultures

Providence, Rhode Island, Us

(1) Study of traumatic brain injury in vitro using 3D neural microtissues by assessing TBI biomarker temporal profiles as a function of strain and strain rate(2) Study of reactive astrogliosis and neuroinflammation in vitro TBI models as a function of strain and strain rate(3) Early stage development of pulmonary artery-inspired, tunable stiffness biomaterials for studying pulmonary hypertension in vitro

Providence, Rhode Island, Us

Investigating the mechanical property and gene expression heterogeneity of adipose-derived stem cell (ASC) populations in the context of osteogenic differentiation potential and enrichment by combining clustering analysis, atomic force microscopy-based single cell mechanical testing, and molecular beacon technologies. Some of my current tasks include image analysis, MATLAB programming, cell culture and osteogenic differentiation of ASCs.

Providence, Rhode Island, Us

Served as a TA for the Tissue Engineering course (BIOL 1440) offered at Brown University during the fall semester.As a TA, I assisted Prof. Diane Hoffman-Kim in organizing the web content for the course, and assisted students in understanding primary research articles and class content discussed in class. In addition, I evaluated student oral presentations on research proposal aimed at designing tissue engineering strategies to address conventional medical and bioengineering limitations.

Providence, Rhode Island, Us

2010-2011: I analyzed the correlation between mechanical properties of adipose-derived stem cells and their differentiation potential into bone, cartilage and fat tissue. The findings obtained from this study are now published as an original scientific article titled "Cellular mechanical properties reflect the differentiation potential of adipose-derived mesenchymal stem cells" in the journal PNAS.2012: I studied the mechanical properties of ASCs across several passages and their implications for stem cell differentiation towards specific lineages. The findings obtained from this study are now published as part of a mini-review/brief report titled "Adipose-derived stem cell fate is predicted by cellular mechanical properties" in the journal Adipocyte.

Ithaca, Ny, Us

Objective: To recreate in vitro models for studying the effects of hyperglycemia on arterial wall stiffeningSynthesized collagen-ribose (glycated) hydrogel scaffolds utilized as three-dimensional, in vitro models for studying the effects of hyperglycemia-induced hydrogel stiffening on smooth muscle cell phenotypeMechanically tested glycated collagen hydrogels using a confined compression load cell to determine the gels’ stiffnessCultured rat aortic smooth muscle cells on collagen-ribose hydrogels and characterization of cell morphology, F-actin filament distribution and orientation and gel contraction assays as a function of substrate stiffness using immunocytochemistry and fluorescence microscope visualization

San Juan, Puerto Rico , Pr

Studied the expression of cell attachment proteins such as vinculin in fetal osteoblasts seeded on titanium alloys and subjected to different degrees of thermal oxidation to demonstrate vinculin expression dependency as a function of substrate surface topography and roughnessConducted immunocytochemistry and cell viability assays as well as cell culture

New Brunswick, Nj, Us

Studied the growth extent and actin expression of fibroblasts seeded on nano and microfibrillar surfaces of different fiber densities as extracellular matrix analogs for spinal cord tissue engineering in vitroConducted protein quantification assays to determine protein concentrations between both substrates and assessed the important clinical implications

Doctor Of Philosophy - Phd, Bioengineering And Biomedical Engineering

M.Eng., Biomedical Engineering

B.S., Chemistry