Kareen Coulombe

Kareen Coulombe is an Associate Professor of Engineering at Brown University, affiliated with the School of Engineering and the Institute for Biology, Engineering, and Medicine. She serves as Program Advisor for Biomedical Engineering and Committee Chair for the Honors Program. Her research focuses on cardiovascular regenerative engineering, leveraging biomaterials, stem cell biology, and mechanobiology to develop therapies for heart attack patients and improve cardiotoxicity assessment. She earned a B.S. in Biomedical Engineering (summa cum laude, 2001) from the University of Rochester and a Ph.D. in Bioengineering (2007) from the University of Washington, followed by an NIH postdoctoral fellowship. Notable grants include NIH R01 HL135091 and NSF CAREER Award (2021).

Research Interests: Biomaterials, cardiac tissue engineering, regenerative medicine, stem cell biology, mechanobiology, and revascularization. Recent breakthroughs include a $2.8M NIH grant (2024), Hazeltine Innovation Awards (2024), and a 2023 Brown Innovation of the Year award. Her Coulombe Lab develops engineered cardiac tissues and vascularized microenvironments, with applications in toxicity testing and heart regeneration.

Publications highlight advancements in collagen microfibers, anisotropic scaffolds, and 3D cardiac microtissues for arrhythmia risk assessment. Awards include the Salomon Award (2015), NSF CAREER (2021), and recognition for mentoring (2019). She teaches Biomaterials (ENGN 1490), Cardiovascular Engineering (ENGN 1520), and Cell-Material Interactions (ENGN 1931K).

Grants and collaborations span NIH, AHA, and industry partners. Recent work includes developing in vitro platforms for environmental cardiotoxicity testing and optimizing vascular integration in engineered tissues. The Coulombe Lab emphasizes diversity in STEM through K-12 outreach, mentorship programs, and inclusive research practices.

Labs/Teams: Coulombe Lab focuses on cardiac regeneration, with collaborations in biomaterials science and clinical translation. Key projects include heparinized alginate therapies, anisotropic scaffold design, and IVIVE modeling for toxicity prediction.