Ioannis Yannas

Professor Ioannis Yannas is a faculty member at the Department of Mechanical Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, with additional appointments in the Harvard-MIT Program in Health Sciences and Technology and the Department of Biological Engineering (2006-2012). His career spans over five decades at MIT, focusing on biomedical applications of polymer science.

• Education
  • A.B. in Chemistry, Harvard College (1957)
  • M.S. in Chemical Engineering Practice, MIT (1959)
  • M.A. (1965) and Ph.D. (1966) in Physical Chemistry, Princeton University

Research interests center on induced organ regeneration using collagen-glycosaminoglycan (GAG) scaffolds. Key contributions include:

• First artificial skin (Integra^TM) for burn treatment
• Peripheral nerve regeneration via collagen scaffolds
• Spinal cord injury repair with neural stem cell-seeded implants
• Mechanistic studies on wound contraction inhibition

Scientific impact manifested through

• Induction into National Inventors Hall of Fame (2015)
• Two National Academy memberships (Medicine 1987, Engineering 2017)
• 350+ clinical studies documenting Integra^TM efficacy
• 20+ patents including US 4,418,691 (first organ regeneration patent)

Advising legacy includes mentoring Dennis Orgill (MD thesis), Linda Chamberlain (Ph.D.) and E. Soller (Ph.D.), who advanced nerve regeneration applications. His work with John Burke, MD remains foundational in burn care.