Alexander Benshoof Egan
Biomedical engineering
Hometown: Phoenix, Arizona, United States
Graduation date: Spring 2025
Additional details: Honors student
FURI | Fall 2024
Leveraging Hybrid Cell Membrane Cloaking for Minimizing Nanoparticle Phagocytosis
Cardiovascular ailments, particularly atherosclerosis, pose significant health risks globally. Existing treatments often fail to target diseased regions, limiting their effectiveness outside of surgical intervention. This project aims to improve the stability of an existing approach pioneered by the Wang lab; creating hybrid membrane-coated nanoparticles (R-MoNP) that merge red blood cell (RBC) membranes with monocyte membranes. This hybrid cloaking strategy aims to decrease phagocytosis and extend nanoparticle circulation time, thereby enhancing targeted delivery to atherosclerotic plaques. This method could provide a breakthrough in precision medicine for cardiovascular diseases.
Mentor: Kuei-Chun "Mark" Wang
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Sponsored project | Fall 2024
Alexander Egan’s FURI project is sponsored by W. L. Gore & Associates.
W. L. Gore & Associates is a uniquely creative, product leadership enterprise that has served a variety of global markets for more than 60 years, and provides innovative solutions that its associates stand behind. Gore established funds to support undergraduate students in the Fulton Undergraduate Research Initiative program and graduate students in the Master’s Opportunity for Research in Engineering program, and values student-driven research and developing relationships with students in the programs.