Sam (Sheng-You) Chen

BioE PhD Proposal Presentation

Wednesday, November 4th, 2026, at 10:00 am

Location: IBB Suddath Seminar Room (1128)

Zoom Link: https://gatech.zoom.us/j/4256237492?omn=96368139923

Advisor:

Dr. Todd Sulchek, George W. Woodruff School of Mechanical Engineering 

Committee Members:

Dr. Alexander Alexeev, George W. Woodruff School of Mechanical Engineering

Dr. Costas Arvanitis, George W. Woodruff School of Mechanical Engineering 

Dr. Edikan Ogunnaike, Wallace H. Coulter Department of Biomedical Engineering

Dr. Shuichi Takayama, Wallace H. Coulter Department of Biomedical Engineering

Mechanics-Driven Microsystems for Cell Therapy Manufacturing

Cell therapies have transformed the treatment of cancer and hold promises for other hard-to-treat diseases, yet their broader adoption remains limited by the complexity, cost, and variability of manufacturing processes. Unlike conventional therapeutics, living cells are sensitive to mechanical forces encountered during manufacturing, from deformation during fluid processing to interactions with engineered materials during expansion. This research aims to advance the understanding of cell mechanical responses and develop microsystems that harness and control mechanical interactions during cell therapy manufacturing. In Aim 1, I will investigate how deformation rate and strain influence cell relaxation and damage responses, advancing fundamental understandings that inform the design of cell-processing systems. In Aim 2, I will develop a microfluidic workflow to label non-phagocytic cells with perfluorocarbon ultrasound contrast agents to enable non-invasive, real-time in vivo tracking at single cell level. A system of microfluidic devices will be used. First a microfluidic mixer will be used to spontaneous emulsification to form nanodroplets. Second, the resulting nanodroplets will then be directed to a microfluidic mechanoporation chip for delivery into T-cells. In Aim 3, I will develop more cell-like antigen-presenting particles with controlled size and stiffness using a feedback-controlled microfluidic platform to produce hydrogel particles. The feedback-control platform uses real-time independent assessments of particle size and stiffness to modify the flow of input materials to achieve a dramatic reduction in property drift. As a result, synthetic antigen-presenting hydrogel particles with cell-like properties will be created and used to investigate how mechanical properties can be tuned to enhance T-cell expansion and promote desirable memory and stem-like phenotypes. Together, these studies will bridge fundamental cell mechanics and engineering applications, laying the foundation for more controlled and reliable cell therapy manufacturing.