Gerhard Sommer

Gerhard Sommer is an Associate Professor at the Institute of Biomechanics, Graz University of Technology (Austria), where he has held academic positions since 2003. He is also Vice Dean of Studies for Biomedical Engineering and Doctoral School, and has served as Deputy Head of the Institute since 2014. His expertise spans cardiovascular biomechanics, arterial properties, and material modeling of biological tissues.

Education: PhD (2008, TU Graz), Habilitation (2021). Key professional milestones include tenure as Assistant Professor (2018–2023) and Senior Postdoctoral Researcher (2013–2018). He has conducted research at the Royal Institute of Technology (KTH), Sweden, and held visiting professorships in France, Germany, and Croatia.

Research focuses on mechanical properties of arteries, atherosclerosis mechanisms, and computational modeling of soft tissues. Notable contributions include studies on homocysteine-induced aortic stiffening and the development of a Cardiac Simulation Device. His work integrates experimental and computational approaches to understand disease progression.

Grants include leadership of Austrian Science Fund (FWF) projects on arterial biomechanics and aortic dissection. Awards include the 2022 Best Collaborative Paper Award and the 2014 Inventum Award.

Labs: Manages the Biomechanics Laboratory since 2007. Current projects involve investigating B-vitamin deficiency effects on arteries and developing iMooc courses like MetSy for metabolic syndrome education.