UC San Diego, Department of Bioengineering

The UC San Diego Department of Bioengineering welcomes its newest faculty member, Gert Cauwenberghs.

Dr. Cauwenberghs received his Engineer’s Degree in Applied Physics from the University of Brussels in 1988. He obtained his Masters of Science degree in Electrical Engineering in 1989 and his Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering in 1994 from the California Institute of Technology.

Dr. Cauwenberghs has held professorial appointments at Johns Hopkins University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He joined the UC San Diego Division of Biological Sciences, Neurobiology Section, in 2005. In July of 2009, Dr. Cauwenberghs was appointed Professor in the UC San Diego Department of Bioengineering.

A combination of bioengineering and medical research at the University of California, San Diego has led to a new discovery that could pave the way for more effective treatments for liver disease.

In this work, the researchers have utilized an array system that can identify the biological components that can lead to or alleviate liver disease. The technology works by controlling the range of environments surrounding star-shaped liver cells called hepatic stellate cells (HSCs). HSCs are the major cell type involved in liver fibrosis, which is the formation of scar tissue in response to liver damage. The activated stellate cell is responsible for secreting collagen that produces a fibrous scar, which can lead to cirrhosis.