Ameer, Cao Named 2022 Researchers to Know
Annual list compiled by the Illinois Science & Technology Coalition spotlights state leaders in innovation
Northwestern Engineering’s Guillermo Ameer and Jian Cao were named on the Researchers to Know 2022 list by the Illinois Science and Technology Coalition (ISTC).
Ameer, Daniel Hale Williams Professor of Biomedical Engineering at the McCormick School of Engineering, professor of surgery at the Feinberg School of Medicine, and director of the Center for Advanced Regenerative Engineering, was cited under the medical technology category. Ameer is a leader in regenerative engineering, biomaterials, additive manufacturing for biomedical devices, controlled drug delivery, and bio/nanotechnology for therapeutics and diagnostics.
Ameer’s laboratory has pioneered the development of tissue regeneration applications of citrate-based biomaterials, the core technology behind the innovative bioresorbable orthopedic tissue fixation devices CITREFIXTM, CITRESPLINETM, and CITRELOCKTM, which were cleared by the FDA in 2020 for clinical use and marketed worldwide by Stryker Corporation.
Cao, Cardiss Collins Professor of Mechanical Engineering and director of the Northwestern Initiative for Manufacturing Science and Innovation, was listed in the complex materials and processes category. Cao’s research in manufacturing has focused on deformation-based and laser additive processes. Her work has made fundamental contributions to the characterization of the effects of material structure on forming behavior of metals and woven composites, and has direct impacts on energy-efficient manufacturing, surface engineering, and distributed manufacturing.
Cao is a member of Hybrid Autonomous Manufacturing, Moving from Evolution to Revolution (HAMMER), a National Science Foundation Engineering Research Center (ERC) announced in August that will develop and implement new manufacturing technologies for agile, high-performance, and quality-assured components. She will lead HAMMER’s overall research to develop convergent manufacturing processes and systems.
Omar Farha, associate professor of chemistry and (by courtesy) chemical and biological engineering, was also listed in the complex materials and processes category.
Previously cited Northwestern Engineering researchers include Sossina Haile (2021), Vinayak Dravid (2020), Michael Jewett (2019), Jennie Rogers (2019), Joshua Leonard (2019), and Ed Colgate (2018).
The ISTC is a member-driven non-profit, nonpartisan organization that cultivates technology-based economic development throughout Illinois. Its annual Researchers to Know list provides a look at some of the researchers that are driving innovation in the state — from those advancing new treatments in medicine, to those revolutionizing sustainability practices and shaping new technologies in the 21st century.