Christopher Chen (academic)

Chen’s scientific work has led to new insights in the biology of the blood vasculature. Chen published an article in 2016 about forces in vascular biology. His research concludes that there is a significant effect of environmental and cell-generated forces on endothelial behavior, and he proposed new concepts about endothelial force sensing and mechanical signaling. In his own studies, he has reported on the importance of the physical properties of the extracellular matrix, cellular interactions with matrix and other cells, and mechanical forces in impacting how endothelial cells signal and organize to form vascular networks. He discovered a role for tugging forces at cell-cell junctions and shear stresses of blood flow in regulating the barrier between blood and tissue compartments. In addition to fundamental studies in vascular biology, Chen has also advanced numerous technologies to promote vascularization for treating ischemic diseases and engraftment of engineered tissues. He has shown that pre-templating vascular cords and channels within artificial grafts leads to rapid vascularization and perfusion of such grafts upon implantation.

Chen has been awarded numerous awards and distinctions such as ONR Young Investigator Award in 1999, the Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers (PECASE) in 2000,

Chen joined the faculty of Johns Hopkins University as an Assistant Professor in Biomedical Engineering and in Oncology in 1999. In 2004, he moved to the University of Pennsylvania, where he served as the inaugural J. Peter Skirkanich Professor of Innovation in Bioengineering, founded and directed the Penn Center for Engineering Cells and Regeneration, and was a founding member of the Penn Institute for Regenerative Medicine. In 2013, Chen joined Boston University as Distinguished Professor of Biomedical Engineering and the Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering at Harvard University. In 2019, he was appointed the William Fairfield Warren Distinguished Professor of Biomedical Engineering at Boston University, the highest distinction bestowed upon senior faculty members at Boston University.

Chen completed his Bachelor’s in Biochemistry from Harvard University in 1990, where he conducted research on integrin receptors and biomechanics of running. After spending a year abroad, he joined Massachusetts Institute of Technology and completed his Master’s in Mechanical Engineering in 1993. He then joined the M.D.-Ph.D. program run by the Harvard-MIT Division of Health Sciences and Technology (HST). He completed his dissertation research with Donald E. Ingber and George M. Whitesides on "Engineering the adhesion of cells to substrates", and received a Ph.D. in 1997 and an M.D. in 1999.

Christopher S. Chen, born in 1968, is an American biological engineer. He is the William Fairfield Warren Distinguished Professor of Biomedical Engineering at Boston University and member of the Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering at Harvard University in Boston.