Named Grant:

Dr. Jerry Gross Memorial Research Career Development Award

About the Investigator:

Dr. Grolman studies the physical properties of the extracellular matrix, focusing on how it regulates cellular morphology to determine function in cancer and the immune response. He received his BS in Biochemistry at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst and his PhD in Materials Science and Engineering at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign. In 2020, following postdoctoral training in Biomedical Engineering at Harvard, he became an Assistant Professor in the Department of Materials Science and Engineering at the Technion.

About the Research:

Mammalian cell morphology is a key determinant of function. It is regulated by cues from the local microenvironment mediated by cell-cell interactions, soluble signaling molecules, and adhesion of receptors on each cell to the extracellular matrix that cushions cells and supports tissues. Many of these properties are interconnected. While cellular mechanics play a major role in all biological processes, techniques currently available to measure force vectors in biological materials and timescales are inadequate. The goal of Dr. Grolman’s research project is to develop new materials that make it possible to measure the forces that cells experience in developing tumors and during the response to immunotherapy. His team tackles these issues by synthesizing novel polymeric architectures and asking how they affect nano-scale stress and strain in 3D, using techniques that include super-resolution live-cell imaging. This will improve understanding of disease states and therapeutic opportunities dependent upon cell and tissue architecture.