Affiliate Faculty Harvard Stem Cell Institute

Lecturer on Surgery Harvard Medical School

Investigator, Other (M) Shriners Hospitals for Children - Boston, Mass General Research Institute

Bioengineer Center for Engineering in Medicine, Massachusetts General Hospital

MD Yale University School of Medicine 1982

BA Biology Yeshiva University 1975

PhD Chemical Engineering Massachusetts Institute of Technology 1984

PhD Biophysical Chemistry and Immunology The Rockefeller University 1979

applied immunology and biotechnology; biomedical devices; biopreservation of cells tissues organs; burns and trauma; cell therapy; metabolic engineering in medicine and biology; microfabrication and nanotechnology; mitochondrial bioengineering; tissue engineering and regenerative medicine Professor Yarmush is the Founding Director of the Center for Engineering in Medicine and Surgery (CEMS) at MGH. He is an internationally recognized expert in several areas of biotechnology and bioengineering with pioneering advances in tissue engineering and regenerative medicine, applied immunology, cell therapy, biopreservation, metabolic engineering, and bioengineered microsystems and biomedical devices. Professor Yarmush’s investigative activities encompass both basic and applied research, and have resulted in numerous patents and the formation of 10 start-up companies. One noteworthy example is Molecmo Biotechnologies, which became Novira Therapeutics, a start-up from the Yarmush lab focusing on discovery and development of novel therapeutics for RNA viruses which, in 2015, was sold to Janssen J&J for $600M for a first-in-class therapy for the treatment of chronic hepatitis B infection. Another noteworthy example is his pioneering work on autonomous, image-guided, robotic vascular access for blood drawing, fluid delivery, catheter placement, and hemodialysis. By harnessing cutting-edge biomedical imaging, computer vision, robotics, artificial intelligence, automation, and miniaturization technologies, Dr. Yarmush has developed a first-in-kind revolutionary system that automates and streamlines vascular access with unprecedented speed, precision, and efficiency.

Over the last 40 years, Dr. Yarmush has published over 550 refereed journal articles, has mentored >65 graduate students and >140 postdoctoral fellows, and has taught a spectrum of courses from molecular genetics and immunology to thermodynamics and transport phenomena, to innovation and entrepreneurship and advanced biotechnology. More than 80 of his former fellows have gone on to successful careers in academia both here and abroad (e.g., Harvard, MIT, Tufts, Northeastern, Boston College, U Massachusetts, Worcester Polytech, Columbia, CCNY, RPI, U Buffalo, U Pennsylvania, Temple, Lehigh, Villanova, Stanford, UCSD, UCLA, UC Davis, USC, U Michigan, U Wisconsin, U Minnesota, Mayo Clinic, U Nebraska, Michigan State, U Pittsburgh, Rutgers U, U Maryland, Case Western, Virginia Tech, IIT Chicago, Georgia Tech, U Alabama, UNLV, Oklahoma State, U Mississippi, UT Southwestern, Texas A&M, Arizona State, Hebrew U, Tel Aviv U, Bar Ilan U, IIT Delhi, Chinese Acad Sci, etc.), and many others have gone on to become leaders in the biotechnology and medical device industries. Professor Yarmush has been a frequent invited speaker at major conferences and institutions, and winner of over 30 local and national awards including founding fellow of the American Institute of Medical and Biological Engineering, fellow of the National Academy of Engineering and fellow of the National Academy of Inventors. He has also served as editor of several journals, most notably the Annual Review of Biomedical Engineering (ARBME), which he founded in 1998, and which for >15 years was #1 in impact factor among its peer group of Biomedical Engineering journals.

Research Summary

The research activities in Professor Yarmush’s laboratory broadly address both scientific and engineering aspects of various challenging areas in biotechnology and clinical medicine. Among his current projects are the following: new nanoparticle technology to enhance wound healing; microfabricated tissue-on-a-chip-systems for drug and environmental toxin testing; pulsed electric field techniques to promote scarless wound healing and wound disinfection; organ re-engineering through recellularization of decellularized scaffolds and revitalization perfusion of marginal organs; supercooling preservation of cells, tissues, and organs; encapsulated mesenchymal stem cells for treatment of spinal cord injury and osteoarthritis; mitochondrial transfer and transplantation of mitochondria in spinal cord injury and traumatic brain injury; and development of automated, image-guided, robotic venipuncture devices for blood drawing, fluid delivery, catheter placement, and hemodialysis with point-of-care capabilities. Success in tackling these projects is enabled by the use of state-of-the-art techniques that include microfabrication and nanotechnology; physical biochemistry; genomics, proteomics and genetic engineering; cell biology and tissue engineering; advanced microscopic imaging; physiologic instrumentation; animal studies; and numerical simulation.

Professor Yarmush has also been PI or co-PI on several predoctoral training grants including  1 NIH T32, 2 NSF IGERTs and 4 Dept of Education GAANN grants. His other academic leadership experiences include Senior Associate Dean for Research, Department Chair, Deputy Chair, and Graduate Program Director. Finally, He also has had extensive experience leading large research grant teams (3 NIH BRPs, 2 Whitaker Foundation Development Awards, 1 NIH P41, 1 NIH U01), and serving as mentor on predoc, postdoc, and young faculty NIH individual awards (3 NIH F31s, 9 NIH F32s, and 9 NIH K-level awards).