Rizwan Lab leads a $25 million award by ARPA-H PRINT Program to create personalized, immune-matched liver from patient biopsy. The VITAL project is in collaboration with other institution including Penn State and UC Davis.
The Rizwan Lab is advancing biomaterial engineering to drive innovations in tissue engineering and regeneration.
Welcome to Rizwan Lab! We develop cutting-edge biomaterials to advance tissue engineering and enhance in-situ regeneration of diseased or damaged tissues. By integrating concepts from polymer chemistry, micro-nano fabrication, and material science, we engineer hydrogel-based biomaterials with unique functionalities. These biomaterials act as synthetic extracellular matrices to enable 2D and 3D cell culture and elucidate key cell-matrix interactions. Our research focuses on three main areas: (1) Designing novel hydrogel-based biomaterials with a focus on clinical translation, (2) Modulating cellular processes such as growth, differentiation, and self-assembly in engineered 2D and 3D environments, and (3) Optimizing biomaterials for ocular, neural, and liver tissue regeneration. With a strong emphasis on clinical impact, we aim to develop modular and adaptable biomaterials that can translate into real-world therapeutic solutions.
Dr Muhammad Rizwan participated as a panelist at the Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health (ARPA-H)'s reception at Pegasus Park, Dallas. Dr. Rizwan shared his experience working with ARPA-H and joined a thoughtful discussion on bold ideas in biomedical research, and the translational strategies to accelerate breakthroughs.
ARPA-H director, Dr Alicia Jackson and other leadership visited Rizwan Lab at the TI-BMES building where the group showcased 6-month progress in the VITAL project spanning biofabrication, patient stem cells, and computational modelling of organ structure.
Dr. Muhammad Rizwan delivered a keynote talk at TERMIS-AM 2025, and moderated the Ocular Biomaterials session
Dr. Muhammad Rizwan provided an overview of Tissue Engineering projects to Dr Robert Langer and UTSW Nobel Laureates
Rizwan at Terasaki Dr. Rizwan presented an invited talk at the Terasaki Institute in Los Angeles, California.
Research Funding
Rizwan Lab is funded by National Institute of Health (NIH) National Eye Institute (NEI), National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK), Wallace Research foundation, and ARPA-H
Our research is published in high impact journals in the field of biomaterials and dish engineering
We Are a Highly Collaborative Lab
Our research is strengthened by a network of collaborations with clinicians and scientists, enabling the development of translational biomaterials to address tissue engineering challenges and explore new research directions. In addition to multiple partnerships within UT Southwestern Medical Center, we collaborate with institutions across the U.S. and internationally.
News and Highlights
Ph.D. student, Omanin Prova, presents fucoidan based hydrogel research in 2025 Society of Biomaterials (SFB) Annual Meeting in Chicago
Rizwan Lab group members working on the ARPA-H VITAL project attended the ARPA-H reception and networking event held in Dallas.
Cody Tuftee, PhD candidate, secured the second position in UT Southwestern Medical Center wide 3-Minute Thesis (3MT) competition!