Laura Niklason
Laura E. Niklason is a physician, professor and internationally recognized researcher in vascular and lung tissue engineering. She is the Nicholas M. Greene Professor of Anesthesiology and Biomedical Engineering at Yale University and co-founder, chief executive officer and president of Humacyte, a regenerative medicine company developing bioengineered human tissues. Her work on lab-grown lungs was recognized as one of the top 50 most important inventions of 2010 by "Time" magazine. Niklason was included on "Fortune"’s “Digital Health Care Leaders” list in 2017 for her work in regenerative medicine. Niklason was inducted into the National Academy  of Inventors in 2014. In 2015, she was elected to the National Academy of Medicine. In 2020, Niklason was elected a member of the National Academy of Engineering for cardiovascular tissue engineering, lung regeneration, and biomedical imaging. She holds more than 30 issued or pending patents in the United States. Early life and education. Laura Niklason was born in Evanston, Ill. She earned a B.S. in physics and a B.A. in biophysics from the University of Illinois (Urbana-Champaign campus) in 1983. She holds an M.D. from the University of Michigan and a Ph.D. in biophysics from the University of  Chicago. Niklason completed her medical training in anesthesiology and critical care medicine at Massachusetts General Hospital in 1996. Career. Niklason was a faculty member at Duke University from 1998 to 2005. In 2004, Niklason along with Drs. Shannon Dahl and Juliana Blum, co-founded Humacyte, a company based in Durham, North Carolina, that is pioneering the development and manufacture of off-the-shelf, universally implantable, bioengineered human tissues to improve the lives of patients and transform the practice of medicine. In 2006, Niklason joined the faculty at the Yale School of Medicine, where she currently serves as an adjunct professor  of anesthesia and biomedical engineering. In 2010, Niklason and her colleagues were able to successfully produce an engineered rat lung that could inhale and exhale carbon dioxide. In 2013, Niklason along with Duke researcher Dr. Jeffery Lawson, developed a bioengineered blood vessel, which Lawson grafted into an artery in a Duke patient's arm. In 2016, Niklason was named as the Nicholas M. Greene Professor of Anesthesiology and Biomedical Engineering at Yale. As part of a research team, Niklason conducted clinical trials into the effectiveness of giving patients experiencing kidney failure bioengineered blood vessels. In 2020, Niklason was appointed CEO  and president of Humacyte. Under Niklason’s leadership, the company went public through a merger with Alpha Healthcare Acquisition Corp in 2021. Niklason, a renowned world leader in cellular therapies and regenerative medicine, continues to maintain an active scientific laboratory, and speaks globally on her research in vascular and non-vascular tissue engineering. Philanthropy. The Brady W. Dougan and Laura E. Niklason House at University of Chicago was named for her. Awards and honors. Niklason is the recipient of multiple awards and honors, including: Publications. Niklason is the co-author of more than 120 publications. A selected list follows: Laura