Bio
B.S. Johns Hopkins University, 1997Ph.D. University of Virginia, 2002Post-Doc University of Virginia, 2004"We use computational modeling to design new regenerative therapies for treating patients with diabetes, heart disease, and musculoskeletal disease."
Shayn Peirce-Cottler, Professor of Biomedical Engineering
Dr. Peirce-Cottler was born in Madison, Wisconsin and raised in Chapel Hill, NC. She received Bachelors of Science degrees in Biomedical Engineering and Engineering Mechanics from The Johns Hopkins University in 1997. She was a 4-time varsity letter winner in Women's Swimming, an Academic All-American, competed in the NCAA Div. III National Championships, and captained the team her senior year in college. She earned her Ph.D. in the Department of Biomedical Engineering at the University of Virginia in 2002.
After a 2-year Post Doc at UVA, Dr. Peirce-Cottler joined the faculty in the Biomedical Engineering Department in 2004 as an Assistant Professor. Dr. Peirce-Cottler develops and uses computational models, in conjunction with novel experimental assays, to study complex, dynamic, and multi-cell biological systems. Her research focuses on understanding how heterogeneous cell behaviors and their interactions enable tissues to adapt over time, during physiological growth and in response to disease. Her multi-scale computational models employ agent-based modeling to bridge protein-level mechanisms with tissue-level, functional outcomes. Her research spans basic science discovery to the design of therapies for regenerative medicine. Specific areas of interest include acute and chronic inflammation, microvascular network patterning, and the role of stem cells in orchestrating tissue regeneration.
Dr. Peirce-Cottler has taught courses on engineering and design, entrepreneurship, computational systems modeling, and cell and molecular biology to undergraduate students, graduate students, and medical school students. Dr. Peirce-Cottler is a past recipient of MIT Technology Review’s “TR100 Young Innovator Award” and the National Biomedical Engineering Society’s “Rita Schaffer Young Investigator Award”. She was recently elected into the American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering College of Fellows. She is currently the President-Elect for The Microcirculatory Society and Chairs the NIH Modeling and Analysis of Biological Systems (MABS) Study Section.