Faculty Profile

Victoria G. Muir

Assistant Professor

(joining Fall 2024)

Education

Post-doctorate – 2024 Princeton University
Doctorate – 2022 University of Pennsylvania
Bachelors – 2018 University of Delaware

About Victoria Muir

Biological environments are often dynamic and spatially heterogeneous. Consider the tissues in our body, which have structural organization and experience complex forces when we simply take a step. Or the ground beneath our feet, where packed grains of soil introduce microscale features in the local environment, and properties like water content can change on time scales ranging from minutes to months or more. In real biological environments, life is not well-mixed, nor is it steady-state.

In The Muir Lab, we explore how cells and materials dynamically interact with biologically-relevant environments in space and time. We specialize in engineering hydrogel biomaterial platforms and bioprinting to design complex microenvironments that mimic biological systems. Combined with real-time imaging, material testing, modelling, and embracing a “maker culture”, we pursue innovative research at the intersection of biology, materials science, and engineering. Our work in “engineering with cells and gels” is inspired by grand challenges across biomedical and environmental applications, including tissue engineering, therapeutic delivery, biofabrication, and environmental microbiology. Some of our current areas of interest include…

1. Cells on the move: Investigating how cells navigate complex environments individually and as a collective
2. Biomaterials under pressure: Investigating the impact of biomechanical forces on hydrogel biomaterial behaviors and design
3. Host-pathogen interactions: Investigating host-pathogen dynamics in spatially heterogenous environments (particular interest in phage-bacteria interactions)
In our research pursuits, we also embark on journeys to design user-friendly, economical biomaterials research tools to expand access to biomaterials research and accelerate progress in the field.

Select Publications

For a complete listing of publications, please view the Full CV.

V.G. Muir, M. Fainor, B.S. Orozco, R.L. Hilliard, M. Boyes, H.E. Smith, R.L. Mauck, T.P. Schaer, J.A. Burdick, S.E. Gullbrand. “Injectable Radiopaque Hyaluronic Acid Granular Hydrogels for Intervertebral Disc Repair”, Advanced Healthcare Materials, 2024, 2303326
V.G. Muir, S. Weintraub, A.P. Dhand, H. Fallahi, L. Han, J.A. Burdick. “Influence of Microgel and Interstitial Matrix Compositions on Granular Hydrogel Composite Properties”, Advanced Science, 2023, 10 (10), 2206117
V.G. Muir, T.H. Qazi, S. Weinstraub, B. Moldanado, P. Arratia, and J.A. Burdick. “Sticking Together: Injectable Granular Hydrogels with Increased Functionality via Dynamic Covalent Inter-particle Crosslinking”, Small, 2022, 18, 6, 2201115
V.G. Muir, M.E. Prendergast, and J.A. Burdick, “Fragmenting Bulk Hydrogels and Processing into Granular Hydrogels for Biomedical Applications”, J. Vis. Exp. , 2022, 183, e63867
V.G. Muir, T.H. Qazi, J. Shan, J. Groll, J.A. Burdick, “Influence of Microgel Fabrication Technique on Granular Hydrogel Properties”, ACS Biomater. Sci. Eng., 2021, 7, 9, 4269–4281

Awards

For a complete listing of awards, please view the Full CV.

AIChE 35 Under 35 Award, 2023
Solomon R. Pollack Award for Excellence in Graduate Bioengineering Research, University of Pennsylvania, 2023
Presidential Postdoctoral Research Fellowship, Princeton University, 2022
Penn Prize for Excellence in Graduate Teaching, University of Pennsylvania, 2020
National Science Foundation (NSF) Graduate Research Fellowship, University of Pennsylvania, 2019
Poddar Award for Rising Star in Chemical Engineering, AIChE, 2019
Barry Goldwater Scholarship, University of Delaware, 2016