Project Description
Project Overview: Stem Pharm is developing a “thin” hydrogel formulation, which will have thicknesses in the nanometer to micrometer scale, to solve several industry challenges that are associated with conventional, “thick” hydrogels, which have thicknesses in the millimeter scale. However, this thin hydrogel formulation is still in development, and Stem Pharm has not yet conducted materials characterization. Therefore, we will determine the thickness, stiffness, and chemical composition of their new, thin hydrogel formulation. This will allow Stem Pharm to more effectively develop their thin hydrogel technology because these materials properties are critical for eliciting the proper cellular responses and effectively modeling the body’s microenvironment. We will conduct this characterization using the instruments available to us at UW – Madison, including, but not limited to, atomic force microscopy (AFM), reflectometry, and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS).
Client: Connie Lebakken, Ph.D., Founder and President, Stem Pharm
Advisor: Steven Visuri, Ph.D., Vice President of Business Development, Stem Pharm
Team: Austin Jenk, jenk@wisc.edu (Leader, Communicator, AFM Specialist)
Cristina Uribe, cauribe@wisc.edu (Planner, Reflectometer and XPS Specialist)
Joseph Harter, harter3@wisc.edu (Financier, Reflectometer and XPS Specialist)
