Tolou Shokuhfar

Tolou Shokuhfar

Tolou Shokuhfar, associate professor of bioengineering, has received a National Science Foundation Faculty Early Career Development Program award to investigate biomineralization in hydrated proteins; an NSF Early-concept Grants for Exploratory Research award to investigate the new touch-and-kill mechanism of 2D nanomaterial interactions with bacteria; and an NSF Materials Research award to investigate biomineralization and demineralization of kidney stones using this novel technology and the state-of-art in-situ liquid electron microscopy/spectroscopy.

Shokuhfar focuses on two areas of research:

• Smart and multifunctional 3D-printable biomaterials with bone tissue regeneration and antimicrobial properties. She has developed a unique 2D nanomaterial, inspired by the cicada wing, that kills bacteria upon contact and prevents bacteria resistance.
•  In situ liquid electron microscopy of biomolecules and biochemical activities in wet or hydrated environment. Shokuhfar has advanced a novel technology — biocompatible graphene liquid cell bioreactors — for nanoscale-level transmission electron microscopy imaging of biological and living systems such as bacteria and their dynamic intracellular events. Previously, such high-resolution imaging was only possible in cryo-preserved cells.