Megan Lord

nsw_lord_2014_tall_poppies_crop
Senior Lecturer
Graduate Sch-Biomedical Engine
Contact details:
+61 2 9385 3910
+61 2 9663 2108
m.lord@unsw.edu.au
Location:

Room 505, Level 5, Samuels Building
UNSW
Sydney NSW 2052
AUSTRALIA

Senior Lecturer, Graduate School of Biomedical Engineering

Associate Member, Centre for Advanced Macromolecular Design, School of Chemical Engineering

Research Interests

Dr Lord's research aims to develop materials that replicate components of tissues called extracellular matrix for both the correct function of implantable medical devices that interface with tissues and the controlled repair of tissues as a result of disease or injury. The extracellular matrix provides much of the tissue architecture and acts as a reservoir of chemical signals for tissue development and repair. By mimicking these natural structures with man-made engineered materials and bioengineered molecules her research team have been working towards repairing tissues including blood vessels, skin, bone and cartilage as well as extending the functional life of cochlear electrodes and platelet blood bags.

Current projects:

  • Bioengineering of drugs and therapeutics. In this program we are bioengineering proteoglycan extracellular matrix molecules, or regions thereof. One sub-program is focused on the recombinant expression of heparin, a potent polysaccharide anti-coagulant, as a future alternative to the heparin isolated from animal sources with greater structural identity. The other sub-program is focused on the recombinant expression of proteoglycan domains in mammalian systems for incorporation into biomaterials for tissue regeneration applications. The proteoglycans expresses are the natural molecules that bind growth factors and modulate cell fate. This sub-program explores the effect of bioreactor conditions on yield, structure and activity.
  • Sugar polymers for tissue regeneration. In this program we are engineering biomimetic-inspired materials for the targeted delivery of growth factors to encourage blood vessel, skin, bone and cartilage regeneration. This program is focused on the development of materials that will promote the regeneration of various tissues. One sub-program is focused on the sulphate modification of chitosan to replicate natural growth factor binding structures, heparan sulphates, to deliver growth factors to target sites. This project is conducted in collaboration with Synedgen Inc, who is focused on designing and synthesising new polysaccharide polymers that stimulate bone regeneration and investigate how the new molecules interact with cells to generate bone, cartilage and skin. The other sub-program focuses on incorporating bioengineered proteoglycan domains into different materials, including collagen and silk, in different formats including tubes, sheets and scaffolds to bind growth factors and promote tissue repair.
  • Cell and tissue responses to medical devices. Understanding how materials used in medical devices interact with the body is crucial for their long-term function. One sub-program is exploring strategies to extend the functional life of platelets stored in blood bags beyond the current 5-7 days by alternative blood bag materials and/or surface coatings that maintain platelets in a viable and non-activated state. This project is conducted in collaboration with the Australian Red Cross Blood Service. The other sub-program is exploring how perilymph proteins interact with Cochlear electrodes in order to explore strategies to minimise fouling of the electrode surface thereby reducing stimulation current and extend battery life.
  • Targeted drug delivery using nanoparticles. Cerium oxide nanoparticles are of interest due to their ability to react catalytically with oxygen free radicals providing anti-oxidant properties. Excessive production of oxygen free radicals underpins inflammatory diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis and atherosclerosis as well as other pathologies including cancer and diabetes. Hence these particles are of clinical interest as anti-oxidant therapies.  In this project we are currently investigating the mechanisms of interactions of these nanoparticles with the dynamic cell environment to understand their clinical applications. We are also functionalising these particles with natural biochemical structures as ligands, including folate, heparin and hyaluronan to create cell-selective particles with tailored biological responses.
  • Diagnostic marker development for arthritis. Biological markers of joint tissue remodelling have been a focus of intense research interest due to the insensitivity and unreliability of current diagnostic methods. The diagnosis of arthritis is largely based on x-rays which are insensitive to early changes in cartilage at the molecular level. Major components of cartilage are proteogylcans including aggrecan, a chondroitin sulfate proteoglycan, which contributes to the compression resistance of cartilage. We have identified a particular chondroitin sulfate structure that is expressed in arthritic synovial fluid and plasma, which is not present in non-arthritic samples. This project aims to identify the proteoglycan to which this structure is attached and investigate whether it is a reliable marker for the early detection of arthritis.

Current Students

PhD students

  • Kumar Bishwajit Project: Nanoparticles for cancer treatment.
  • Keerthana Chandrasekar Project: Cell and tissue responses to medical device materials.
  • Ted Chang Project: Polymeric micelles for cancer drug delivery
  • Xiaoting Lin Project: Development of biomimetic materials for vascular tissue engineering.
  • Deepika Nandakumar (University of Sydney) Project: Protein adsorption and platelet interactions on diamond-like carbon and titania surfaces.
  • Chun-yi Ng (University of Sydney) Project: The role of macrophage phenotypes in atherosclerosis.
  • Jonathan Palmer Project: Biological Determinants of Activated Electrode Stability
  • Fengying Tang Project: The structure and roles of chondroitin sulfate proteoglycan 4, CSPG4, in cancer cells
  • James Vassie Project: Cerium oxide nanoparticle interactions with cancer cells
  • Joel Yong Project: Nanoparticles for cancer treatment.

Masters by Research

  • Meizhai Guo  Project: Analysis of arthritis cartilage wear particles
  • Yaolei Mi Project: Investigation of chitosan-based materials for skin wound healing.

Honours

  • Carine Ch'ng    Project: Development of blood bag materials for prolonged storage.
  • Gwenn Chu    Project: Investigation of the platelet proteome.
  • Tesa Gammal (B Med Sci Hons) Project: Investigation of inflammatory response to medical devices.
  • Amy Jiang    Project: Bioreactor optimisation to manufacture bioactive heparan sulphates for tissue regeneration.
  • Dilshan Kalpage Project: Immunotherapies that target the tumour microenvironment
  • Ha Na Kim    Project: Interaction of chitosans with keratinocytes for wound healing
  • Kieran Lau    Project: Biomimetic materials for vascular tissue engineering
  • Georgina McKenzie Project: Targeting of bioactive nanoparticles to tumour cells.
  • Jothini Sivananthan    Project: Bioinformatic development of targeted genome editing of HSPG2
  • Jacqueline Smith    Project: Therapeutic bioactive nanoparticles in sunscreens
  • Zeina Tebbo    Project: Development of diagnostic markers of arthritis.

Number graduated: 3 PhD, 3 MSc (Research), 21 MBiomedE, 46 BE (Honours)

Lectures/ Courses taught

 Professional Activities

Invited Presentations

  • Invited speaker for the 9th International Conference on Proteoglycans and the 10th Pan-Pacific Connective Tissues Symposium, August 2015.
  • Invited speaker for 6th International Nanomedicine Conference, July 2015.
  • Invited speaker for Hyaluronan 2015, June 2015.
  • Invited speaker for the Australia New Zealand Microcirculation Society Meeting, April 2015.
  • Invited keynote speaker for the Combined Australian Materials Societies, November 2014.
  • Invited speaker at the Gordon Research Conference on Proteoglycans, July 2014.
  • Invited speaker and session chair at the Gordon Research Seminar on Proteoglycans, July 2014.
  • Invited speaker at the Australasian Wound and Tissue Repair Society Annual Meeting, May 2014.

Awards

  • NSW Young Tall Poppy Science Award (2014) in recoginition of the achievements of Australia’s outstanding young scientific researchers and communicators.
  • UNSW School of Chemical Engineering Emeritus Professor Maria Skyllas-Kazacos Young Professional Award for Outstanding Achievement  (2013) Award for female alumni from the UNSW School of Chemical Engineering in recognition of a significant achievement in their field.
  • Finalist in the Scopus Young Scientist of the Year Awards in the Engineering and Technology category (2011)
  • Trans-continental grant for young scientsist from the Federation of European Biochemical Societies (2011)
  • Australian Post-doctoral Research Fellowship - Industry, Australian Research Council (2010)
  • New Investigator Award from the Matrix Biology Society of Australia and New Zealand (2008) This award recognised the research achievements of early career researchers in the field of matrix biology with less than 10 years post-doctoral experience.
  • UNSW Early Career Research Travel Award (2007) This award recognised the research achievements of early career researchers at UNSW and supported travel to an international conference to present their work.
  • COST Action 537 Early Career Research Short Term Sicentific Mission Award (2007) European initiative that identified emerging researchers with a capacity for independetn research in areas with direct health outcomes.
  • Australasian Society for Biomaterials and Tissue Engineering International Travel Grant (2006) Society award that recognised student research excellent and supported travel to international collaborator's laboratory.
  • Joan Waugh Scholaship (2004) Award from Tara Old Girls' Association for excellence in chosen field and supported post-graduate studies.
  • Australasian Society for Biomaterials and Tissue Engineering Student Travel Grant (2004) Society award that recognised student research excellent and supported travel to annuals society meeting.
  • Boehringer Ingelheim Fonds Travel Scholarship (2003) Award to support short-term laboratory visit to expand research skills and build collaborations.
  • Australian Postgraduate Award (2003)

  • Supplementary Engineering Postgraduate Award (2003), Faculty of Engineering, UNSW.

Grants

Dr Lord has attracted more than $3M in research funding since 2007 including:

  • Australian Research Council Discovery Project (2015 - 2017) Project: Novel biomimetic vascular biomaterials using extracellular matrix molecules
  • Australian Research Council Linkage Project (2014 - 2017) Project: Biomimetic blood bag materials for prolonged platelet storage.
  • Australian Research Council Linkage Project (2014 - 2017) Project: Biological determinants of the safety and stability of neuroprosthetic stimulation electrodes.
  • UNSW Gold Star Scheme: (2014) Project: Role of glycocalyx remodelling in endothelial cell function
  • National Heart Foundation and UNSW Gold Star Schemes (2011 - 2012) Project: The roles of perlecan heparan sulfate in modulating vascular intimal hyperplasia. This project invesitgated the role of heparan sulfate in controlling vascular matrix proliferation which characterises vascular intimal hyperplasia.
  • Australian Research Council Linkage Project including fellowship (2010 - 2013) Project: Targeted growth factor delivery using natural polysaccharide materials for bone regeneration. This project investigated the sulfate modification of chitosan to mimic natural sugar structures for the efficient and sustained delivery of growth factors for bone repair.
  • Australian Research Council Discovery Project (2010 - 2012) Project: Advanced nanoparticles as biocompatible antioxidant agents with targeting functionality. This project investigated the effect of nanoparticles on cellular toxicity and oxygen free radical scavenging. In time, these particles may be a therapeutic for the treatment of inflammatory diseases.

  • Australian Research Council Linkage Project (2007 - 2010) Project: Blood component interactions with polysaccharide biomaterials for vascular applications. This project investigated to role of a chitosan-based material in promoting wound healing through platelet and mast cell interactions with chitosan and the downstream effects on wound healing.

Education

  • Doctor of Philosophy, Graduate School of Biomedical Engineering, The University of New South Wales (2006)
  • Master of Biomedical Engineering, The University of New South Wales (2003)
  • Bachelor of Enginering (Chemical Engineering) Hons I, The University of New South Wales (2003)
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