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David Lynn portrait

David Lynn

Duane H. and Dorothy M. Bluemke Professor of Chemical and Biological Engineering
Vilas Distinguished Achievement Professor

Our research focuses broadly on (i) the design and synthesis of soft materials and (ii) the fabrication and physical characterization of macromolecular assemblies, nanostructured materials, and interfaces, with particular interests in the design of polymers and surfactants, reactive and non-wetting surfaces, and materials that address problems of biotechnological and biomedical importance. Our work is conducted in a highly interdisciplinary and collaborative training environment that provides opportunities for students with backgrounds and interests in chemistry, engineering, biology, materials science, medicine, and the pharmaceutical sciences. Brief summaries and more extended descriptions of ongoing research efforts are described in more detail in links provided on our laboratory web site.

Department

Chemical & Biological Engineering

Contact

1004, Engineering Hall
1415 Engineering Dr
Madison, WI

  • PhD 1999, California Institute of Technology
  • BA 1994, Univ. of South Carolina

  • Polymers and soft materials
  • Surfaces and interfaces
  • Biomaterials and biotechnology
  • Gene and drug delivery
  • Synthesis and characterization
  • Controlled Release

  • 2020 University of Wisconsin – Madison, Kellett Mid-Career Award
  • 2016 College of Engineering, Univ. of Wisconsin-Madison, Duane H. and Dorothy M. Bluemke Professorship
  • 2015 Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation, Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation Innovation Award, Finalist
  • 2014 University of Wisconsin – Madison, H. I. Romnes Faculty Fellowship
  • 2014 University of Wisconsin – Madison, Vilas Distinguished Achievement Professorship
  • 2014 National Academy of Engineering, National Academy of Engineering Indo-American Frontiers of Engineering Symp., Invited Participant
  • 2013 ACS Division of Polymer Chemistry, Biomacromolecules/Macromolecules Young Investigator Award
  • 2011 NIH , NIH Edward C. Nagy New Investigator Award Lecturer
  • 2010 University of Wisconsin – Madison, Vilas Associate Award
  • 2008 Transatlantic Symposium on the Frontiers of Chemistry, Invited Participant
  • 2007 Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, Alfred P. Sloan Research Fellow
  • 2007 National Academy of Sciences, Kavli Frontiers Fellow
  • 2007 National Academy of Sciences, National Academy of Sciences Kavli Frontiers of Science Symposium, Invited Participant
  • 2006 Transatlantic Symposium on the Frontiers of Chemistry, Invited Participant
  • 2005 3M Corporation , 3M Corporation Non-Tenured Faculty Award
  • 2004 National Academy of Sciences, National Academy of Sciences Keck Futures Initiative Symposium, Invited Participant
  • 2003 Arnold and Mabel Beckman Foundation, Arnold and Mabel Beckman Foundation Young Investigator Award
  • 2003 MIT Technology Review, MIT Technology Review TR100 Award: Top 100 Young Innovators in the World
  • 1999 National Institutes of Health , National Institutes of Health Postdoctoral Research Fellow
  • 1999 Herbert Newby McCoy Award for Distinguished Graduate Research
  • 1998 Union Carbide Corporation, Union Carbide Corporation Innovation Recognition Award
  • 1997 Dow Chemical Company , Dow Chemical Company Graduate Travel Fellowship
  • 1994 Harper Award for Excellence in Undergraduate Research in Chemistry

  • Pi~neres-Qui~nones, Oscar H,, O~nate-Socarras, Maria K,, Wang, F., Lynn, D., & Acevedo-V'elez, Claribel, (2024). Pickering Emulsions of Thermotropic Liquid Crystals Stabilized by Amphiphilic Gold Nanoparticles. Langmuir, 40(7), 3923--3934.
  • Chang, H., Chang, D. H., Stamoulis, A. G., Huber, G. W., Lynn, D., Palecek, S. P., & Dumesic, J. A. (2023). Controlling the toxicity of biomass-derived difunctional molecules as potential pharmaceutical ingredients for specific activity toward microorganisms and mammalian cells. Green Chemistry, 25(14), 5416--5427.
  • Wang, F., Qin, S., Acevedo-V'elez, Claribel,, Van Lehn, R. C., Zavala, V. M., & Lynn, D. (2023). Decoding Optical Responses of Contact-Printed Arrays of Thermotropic Liquid Crystals Using Machine Learning: Detection and Reporting of Aqueous Amphiphiles with Enhanced Sensitivity and Selectivity. ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces, 15(43), 50532--50545.
  • Chang, D. H., Lee, M., Wang, N., Lynn, D., & Palecek, S. P. (2023). Establishing Quantifiable Guidelines for Antimicrobial $alpha$/$beta$-Peptide Design: A Partial Least-Squares Approach to Improve Antimicrobial Activity and Reduce Mammalian Cell Toxicity. ACS Infectious Diseases, 9(12), 2632--2651.
  • Ye, Z., Gastfriend, B. D., Umlauf, B. J., Lynn, D., & Shusta, E. V. (2022). Antibody-targeted liposomes for enhanced targeting of the blood-brain barrier. Pharmaceutical research, 39(7), 1523--1534.
  • Agarwal, H., Breining, W. M., & Lynn, D. (2022). Continuous fabrication of slippery liquid-infused coatings on rolls of flexible materials. ACS Applied Polymer Materials, 4(2), 787--795.
  • Pi~neres-Qui~nones, Oscar H,, Lynn, D., & Acevedo-V'elez, Claribel, (2022). Environmentally responsive emulsions of thermotropic liquid crystals with exceptional long-term stability and enhanced sensitivity to aqueous amphiphiles. Langmuir, 38(3), 957--967.
  • Polaske, T. J., Gahan, C. G., Nyffeler, K. E., Lynn, D., & Blackwell, H. E. (2022). Identification of small molecules that strongly inhibit bacterial quorum sensing using a high-throughput lipid vesicle lysis assay. Cell chemical biology, 29(4), 605--614.
  • Gahan, C. G., Van Lehn, R. C., Blackwell, H. E., & Lynn, D. (2022). Interactions of bacterial quorum sensing signals with model lipid membranes: influence of membrane composition on membrane remodeling. Langmuir, 39(1), 295--307.
  • Yu, Y., Appadoo, V., Ren, J., Hacker, T. A., Liu, B., & Lynn, D. (2022). pH-Responsive Polyelectrolyte Coatings that Enable Catheter-Mediated Transfer of DNA to the Arterial Wall in Short and Clinically Relevant Inflation Times. ACS Biomaterials Science & Engineering, 8(10), 4377--4389.

  • CBE 599 - Special Problems (Spring 2025)
  • CBE 890 - Pre-Dissertator's Research (Spring 2025)
  • CHEM 990 - Research (Spring 2025)
  • CBE 599 - Special Problems (Fall 2024)
  • CBE 990 - Thesis-Research (Fall 2024)
  • CHEM 990 - Research (Fall 2024)
  • CBE 990 - Thesis-Research (Summer 2024)
  • CHEM 990 - Research (Summer 2024)
  • CBE 599 - Special Problems (Spring 2024)
  • CBE 648 - Synthetic Organic Materials in Biology and Medicine (Spring 2024)
  • CBE 990 - Thesis-Research (Spring 2024)
  • CHEM 990 - Research (Spring 2024)
  • CBE 540 - Polymer Science and Technology (Fall 2023)
  • CBE 599 - Special Problems (Fall 2023)
  • CBE 990 - Thesis-Research (Fall 2023)
  • CHEM 990 - Research (Fall 2023)
  • CBE 990 - Thesis-Research (Summer 2023)
  • CHEM 990 - Research (Summer 2023)