Prof. Guy M. Genin

Department of Mechanical Engineering and Materials Science, Washington University

Department of Neurological Surgery, Washington University School of Medicine

Joining of dissimilar materials is a fundamental challenge in engineering. Nature presents a highly effective solution at the attachment of tendon to bone (the “enthesis”) in the rotator cuff of the humeral head. The natural enthesis is far superior to the connection that exists following healing or surgical repair of the rotator cuff: the natural enthesis does not regrow in either instance, and recurrence of tears following surgical repair is as high as 94%. We therefore consider the natural enthesis to be an excellent model for attachment, and study it both to improve surgical outcomes and to motivate biomimetic attachment schemes for structured engineering materials.

Our work suggests that the natural enthesis is toughened by coordinated multiscale mechanisms. Our working hypothesis is that nanometer- and micrometer-scale phenomena combine to produce a tough, compliant millimeter-scale band of tissue that ameliorates stress concentrations. This talk will summarize our recent efforts to characterize, understand, and regenerate the cross-scale toughening and stiffening mechanisms that exist at the natural enthesis.

Biography:

Guy Genin is Professor of Mechanical Engineering & Materials Science at Washington University in St. Louis, and of Neurological Surgery at the Washington University School of Medicine. He earned his Ph.D. in solid mechanics from Harvard then pursued postdoctoral research at both Cambridge and Brown. At Washington University, his lab focuses on interfaces and adhesion in nature and physiology. Prof. Genin chairs the American Society of Mechanical Engineers’ Tissue and Cellular Engineering technical committee, and is the recipient of numerous awards for engineering design, teaching, and research, including a Research Career Award from the National Institutes of Health. This work is supported by grants from the National Institutes of Health and the National Science Foundation.

time:10:00-11:30 ,May 31st,2013

Venue:1512#,YiFu Technology and Science Building