Mengnan Z. Dennis

Bio

Mengnan’s scientific journey began when she moved to the U.S. from Tianjin, China in 2002. As a PhD student in Dr. King’s lab, she is currently focused on developing Foam-Fiber Composite Scaffolds with outstanding porosity and strength, which are crucial for medical progress. Mengnan is skilled at culturing primary cells from commercially sourced meat, such as beef and pork, in unique micro-isolation bioreactors she helped create. These bioreactors operate independently from traditional incubators, utilizing heated benches, demonstrating real-world application and industrial scalability.

Despite the demanding research schedule, Mengnan manages it all. She adeptly balances her time in the lab with a fulfilling family life. Being a mother to a twelve-year-old and a fifteen-year-old, she seamlessly integrates quality family time with her scientific pursuits. During her rare tranquil moments, Mengnan finds comfort in literature. “Little Women” by Louisa May Alcott remains her treasured companion. Mengnan embodies strength, infusing resilience, dedication, and a dash of culinary expertise into the fabric of her extraordinary life—dedicated to advancing scientific knowledge.

Area(s) of Expertise

Mengnan working on developing foam-fiber composite scaffolds for tissue engineering applications. Her research aims to develop scaffolds that boast both high porosity and high strength, ideal for tissue engineering applications. She collaborates with esteemed labs such as Dr. Brown's Advanced Wound Healing Lab on dual-component scaffolds for diabetic wound healing and the Brudno Lab for Molecular Pharmacoengineering on biodegradable composite scaffolds for high-efficiency cellular transduction and CAR-T cell synthesis.