{"id":1987,"date":"2017-01-25T12:37:38","date_gmt":"2017-01-25T18:37:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.eng.ufl.edu\/nimet\/?page_id=1987"},"modified":"2026-04-14T12:43:59","modified_gmt":"2026-04-14T16:43:59","slug":"blanka-sharma","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.eng.ufl.edu\/nimet\/people-2\/coe\/blanka-sharma\/","title":{"rendered":"Blanka Sharma"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n
\"Blanka<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

Assistant Professor, Department of Biomedical Engineering
<\/strong>PhD, Johns Hopkins University
Biomedical Engineering<\/p>\n\n\n\n

J. Crayton Pruitt Family Department of Biomedical Engineering<\/a> | Herbert Wertheim College of Engineering<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Research Summary:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Dr. Sharma\u2019s research is focused on understanding the fundamental interactions between stem cells and diseased\/injured tissues, and developing biomaterials to better control stem cell behavior in the body. This includes engineering of nanoparticle-based targeted drug\/gene delivery systems and tissue engineering scaffolds to direct the therapeutic function of stem cells. Ultimately, our goal is to translate this research into better ways to treat traumatic injuries, cancer, and degenerative diseases.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Honor and Awards:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Selected as “20 under 40” outstanding young faculty by the American Society for Engineering Education<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Invited Mentee, U.S. Bone and Joint Initiative Young Investigator Program<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Invited Participant, National Academies Kecks Future Initiatives (NAKFI) Conference on Collective Behavior<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council (NSERC) of Canada Postgraduate Fellow<\/p>\n\n\n\n

First Place Award for Outstanding Research at the Annual Meeting for the International Society for Advanced Biomaterials and Biomechanics<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Medtronic Scholar<\/p>\n\n\n\n

First prize in Biotechnology Young Entrepreneur\u2019s Scheme (Business Plan Competition)<\/p>\n\n\n\n