Yunfeng Chen

Yunfeng Chen, PhD, is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Biochemistry & Molecular Biology at the University of Texas Medical Branch (UTMB) School of Medicine. His research bridges mechanobiology, vascular biology, and biomedicine through the emerging field of 'mechano-medicine.' Previously, he conducted postdoctoral research at The Scripps Research Institute with support from the MERU Foundation.

• PhD in BioEngineering, Georgia Institute of Technology (recipient of BioEngineering Outstanding Thesis Award)

Chen's work focuses on force-regulated molecular binding, cell adhesion, and mechanosignaling in vascular systems. His lab employs seven integrated approaches: Mechanics, Microscopy, Microfabrication, Molecular Engineering, Molecular Dynamics Simulation, Mouse Models, and Mechano-medicine. Key research areas include platelet mechanosensing via GPIb and integrin αIIbβ3, thrombosis mechanisms, von Willebrand disease pathogenesis, and vascular dysfunctions related to viruses like SARS-CoV-2.

His recent publications reveal critical insights into integrin conformational dynamics, platelet aggregation mechanisms, and novel microfluidic diagnostic platforms. Research trends show increasing focus on translating biomechanical discoveries into therapeutic strategies for arterial thrombosis and bleeding disorders, with growing emphasis on high-throughput screening and computational modeling.

• Mary Rodes Gibson Memorial Award in Hemostasis and Thrombosis (American Society of Hematology 2017)
• American Heart Association Postdoctoral Fellowship (2019)
• Yuan-Cheng Fung Best Paper Award (2019)
• ICBME Young Scholars Award (2019)

Chen currently leads three major research projects: an NIH R00 grant on inhibiting biomechanical platelet aggregation for thrombosis prevention, an American Heart Association project on platelet adhesiveness regulation, and a University of Pennsylvania collaboration on T-cell profiling in neurodegenerative diseases. His lab develops microfluidic platforms for disease diagnosis and drug screening while investigating fundamental mechanisms of vascular mechanobiology. Current work includes exploring viral impacts on vascular function and engineering VWF therapeutics for bleeding disorders.