Announcing the 2024 BWF BioInterfaces Rising Star Awardee

Sponsored by the BioInterfaces SIG and Burroughs Wellcome Fund (BWF), the BWF BioInterfaces Rising Star Award recognizes outstanding research by postdoc-level scientists who excel at interdisciplinary research across biomaterials and protein/cell biology.

The 2024 applicant pool was again outstanding. We are excited about the future contributions of these postdoc-level scientists who are pushing the frontier of BioInterfaces research. They are uniquely positioned to bring a biomaterials lens to cutting-edge research in protein and cell biology, and, conversely, to translate progress in molecular and cell biology into innovative biomaterials.

Exemplifying this BioInterfaces mindset, we congratulate Dr. Lulu Xue as the 2024 BWF BioInterfaces Rising Star.

Dr. Xue, a postdoctoral fellow in the Department of Bioengineering at the University of Pennsylvania, is advancing precision messenger RNA (mRNA) medicine interface through the integration of lipid chemistry with multiple analytical and delivery technologies. Dr. Xue recently developed ionizable lipid nanoparticles for the delivery of mRNA therapeutics to the bone microenvironment. He also created a high-throughput barcoding technology to identify lung-tropic nanoparticles for antiangiogenic therapy in preclinical disease models.

We thank the group of BWF and SFB reviewers who served on the 2024 selection committee: Claudia Loebel (SFB), Tammy Collins (BWF), Kelly Rose (BWF), Jouha Min (SFB), Adam Gormley (SFB), and Mary Beth Monroe (SFB).