Sangeeta Bhatia

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Sangeeta N. Bhatia
Sangeeta N. Bhatia (Credit: Christopher Michel, 2023)
Born (1968-06-24) June 24, 1968 (age 57)
NationalityAmerican
CitizenshipAmerican
Alma mater
Known forNanotechnology for tissue repair and regeneration
Awards
Scientific career
FieldsNanotechnology, Tissue engineering
Institutions
Academic advisorsMehmet Toner

Sangeeta N. Bhatia (born June 24, 1968) is an inventor, professor, and entrepreneur uniquely trained as both a physician and an engineer. She is a prominent figure at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in Cambridge, Massachusetts, where she holds multiple distinguished appointments and directs cutting-edge research.

Current Appointments and Affiliations

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At MIT, Bhatia is the John J. and Dorothy Wilson Professor at both the Institute for Medical Engineering & Science (IMES) and the Department of Electrical Engineering & Computer Science (EECS). She serves as the Director of the Marble Center for Cancer Nanomedicine at the Koch Institute for Integrative Cancer Research and is an Investigator of the Howard Hughes Medical Institute. Her affiliations also extend to being an Institute Member of the Broad Institute and an Associate Faculty at the Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering.

Beyond her research and academic roles, Bhatia is the Founding Director of the MIT Faculty Founder Initiative. This initiative is dedicated to increasing the representation of MIT faculty members, particularly women, who launch biotechnology companies, addressing a significant gender gap in biotech entrepreneurship.

Bhatia has been a member of Brown University's Board of Trustees since 2015, serving as a fellow since 2019 and currently chairing academic affairs.[1] She also serves on the Board of Directors of Vertex Pharmaceuticals, where she chairs the science and technology committee. She has presented her vision for applying engineering solutions to medical problems on international stages such as the World Economic Forum, TED, the Gates Foundation Global Grand Challenges, and the Cancer Moonshot.

Sangeeta Bhatia speaking at the TED Conference (Credit: Ryan Lash, 2015)[2]

Research and Impact

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Bhatia leverages miniaturization tools drawn from the computer industry to drive medical innovation. Her groundbreaking work has broad applications in cancer, liver, and infectious diseases, leading to significant advancements in early disease detection, human disease modeling, tissue regeneration, cell transplantation, and the development of cancer therapeutics.[3]

Bhatia's laboratory, the Laboratory for Multiscale Regenerative Technologies (LMRT), operates at the interface of living and synthetic systems, engineering micro and nanotechnologies to tackle complex human health challenges.

Liver Disease

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Bhatia's doctoral work laid the foundation for keeping liver cells functional outside the human body. By adapting techniques from computer chip design and photolithography, she microfabricated substrates that support the growth and function of 2D and 3D human liver cells in a lab dish. This led to the invention of the "microliver," a miniature model organ that revolutionized the efficient testing of drug reactions.[3][4][5] It is now used globally by companies to evaluate drug efficacy and predict toxic side effects. Further research in her lab, including the use of 3D printing to create synthetic vascular systems, aims to develop larger tissue structures with the ultimate goal of an artificial human liver. This foundational work was among the first at MIT in the area of biological micro-electromechanical systems (Bio-MEMS).

The LMRT continues to apply micro- and nanotechnology to tissue repair and regeneration, studying the interactions between hepatocytes (liver cells) and their microenvironment. This work improves cellular therapies for liver disease, maximizes hepatocyte function, and enhances the understanding of liver physiology and pathophysiology. Her research has been instrumental in studying diseases like hepatitis and malaria. In collaboration with Christopher Chen at Boston University, Bhatia's lab developed human microlivers that can be transplanted, vascularized, and survive in vivo, offering potential curative therapies for both heritable and acquired liver diseases.[6]

Cancer and Infectious Diseases

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A significant area of LMRT's work involves developing nanomaterials as tools for biological studies and as multifunctional agents for cancer therapies. This includes designing nanoparticles and nanoporous materials that can home in on tumors, signal cellular changes, enhance imaging, or deliver therapeutic components. Early work in 2002, with Erkki Ruoslahti, involved developing phage-derived peptide-targeted nanomaterials for in vivo tumor targeting.[4][7][8] More recently, Bhatia, in collaboration with Erkki Ruoslahti and Michael Sailor, has explored engineering beneficial probiotics to detect or treat cancer cells.[3]

For over a decade, LMRT has pioneered new technologies in activity-based diagnostics.[9] This includes designing nanosensors with biological molecules, such as peptide barcodes, that can signal the presence of diseases like cancer when interacting with aberrantly active enzymes (proteases) in diseased tissue.[10] These specialized nanoparticles allow for detection via simple tests on urine similar to an at-home pregnancy test,[11] breath,[12][13] or blood samples.[14] This platform has expanded to detect 12 diseases, including 6 cancer types.[15] Nanosensors can be administered via inhalation,[13] intramuscular injection,[16] and even ingested in the form of probiotic bacteria.[17][18][19] The LMRT is also exploring breath-based diagnostics for rapid results and has developed diagnostic tools that use DNA barcodes and CRISPR technology,[20] making cancer diagnostics more affordable and accessible for low- and middle-resource settings.

Early life and education

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Sangeeta Bhatia was born in 1968 in Boston, Massachusetts, to parents who emigrated from India. She is an alumna of Lexington High School in Lexington, MA. Her father was an engineer and entrepreneur, and her mother was one of the first women to receive an MBA in India. Bhatia's interest in engineering was sparked during her 10th-grade biology class and a visit with her father to an MIT lab, where she witnessed a demonstration of an ultrasound machine for cancer treatment.[21]

She pursued bioengineering at Brown University, where her involvement in a research group studying artificial organs solidified her decision to pursue graduate studies in the field.[22] After graduating with honors in 1990,[23] Bhatia was initially rejected from the MD-PhD program run by the Harvard-MIT Division of Health Sciences and Technology (HST) but was accepted into the Mechanical Engineering Master's program. She was subsequently accepted into the HST MD-PhD program, where she was advised by Mehmet Toner. She received her Ph.D. in 1997 and her M.D. in 1999, followed by postdoctoral training at Massachusetts General Hospital.[21][23] Bhatia met her husband, Jagesh Shah, as classmates in HST. Shah is currently an executive in the biotechnology industry. They have two daughters.

Career

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Bhatia began her academic career in 1998, joining the bioengineering faculty at the University of California, San Diego (UCSD). As an assistant professor, she was awarded a five-year Packard Fellowship for Science and Engineering from the David and Lucile Packard Foundation in 1999.[24] She was recognized with a "Teacher of the Year" award at the Jacobs School of Engineering in 2001,[25] and was named an "Innovator under 35" by MIT Technology Review in 2003.[26]

Bhatia co-authored the first undergraduate textbook on tissue engineering, Tissue engineering (2004), written for senior-level and first-year graduate courses with Bernhard Palsson.[27] She was a co-editor of Microdevices in Biology and Medicine (2009)[28] and Biosensing: International Research and Development (2005).[29] In 2005, she joined the MIT faculty in the Division of Health Sciences & Technology and the Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science. The Scientist named her a "Scientist to Watch" in 2006, and she became a Howard Hughes Medical Institute Investigator in 2008.[30][31][32]

Since 2013, Bhatia has expanded her affiliations within MIT and Harvard, including the Ludwig Center for Molecular Oncology (2013), the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard (2014), the MIT Center for Neurobiological Engineering (2016), the Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering (2018), and the Martin Trust Center for MIT Entrepreneurship (2022).

Bhatia currently directs the Laboratory for Multiscale Regenerative Technologies and the Marble Center for Cancer Nanomedicine at MIT. She has been affiliated with Brigham and Women's Hospital and is a member of the intramural faculty at the Koch Institute for Integrative Cancer Research. She served on the National Cancer Institute (NCI) Board of Scientific Advisors and co-led the first synthetic biomarker think tank at the NCI (SYNDICATE) with the late Sanjiv Gambhir.[33] She also co-chaired the first AACR conference on Precision Prevention, Early Detection, and Interception of Cancer, and the annual Irwin M. Arias Symposium, a leading event in liver research.

Entrepreneurship, Outreach, and Advocacy

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Bhatia is a prolific inventor,[34] holding more than 65 issued or pending patents for clinical and biotechnological applications of engineering principles over twenty years. Her entrepreneurial ventures include:

Bhatia is a passionate advocate for gender equity and inclusivity in STEM fields.[38] She co-founded the MIT Faculty Founders Initiative with MIT Professor and President Emerita Susan Hockfield and MIT Amgen Professor of Biology Emerita Nancy Hopkins. This initiative aims to address the significant disparity in the number of female academics in science and engineering who become entrepreneurs. Their research revealed that women had founded less than 10% of the 250 biotech startups created by MIT professors, despite women comprising 22% of the MIT faculty.[39] Her dedication to diversity extends to:

Bhatia's advocacy and groundbreaking work have made her a public figure, featured in diverse media. She has been named one of Fast Company's Most Creative People (2014) and a Foreign Policy's leading global thinker. Her inspiring story has been featured on TV Nova Science Now, in the film Picture a Scientist, and in various books and podcasts. She's even been rendered as a LEGO minifigure and recognized among Vogue India's Incredible Women, showcasing her broad impact and visibility.

Lego character of Sangeeta Bhatia designed by Maia Weinstock '99, photo by Erik Gould.[41]

Bhatia and her over 85 trainees have contributed to more than 230 peer-reviewed scientific papers and more than 65 issued or pending patents over twenty years. As of 2025, Bhatia has launched 8 biotechnology companies at the intersection of medicine and miniaturization. About three-quarter of her former postdoctoral trainees are current academic faculty members (half of which are already tenured), while a quarter of her 39 Ph.D. graduates are academic faculty members and another quarter hold Director or C-suite roles in biotech and pharma companies.[42] Notably, about half of her graduate and post-graduate trainees in the past decade have identified as female. She has mentored a next generation of academic faculty in nanomedicine and bioengineering at institutions worldwide. Notable alumni from her lab include:

Awards and Honors

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As a prolific inventor and passionate advocate for diversity in science and engineering, Bhatia has received numerous prestigious honors. She is the first female physician-scientist in history to be an elected member of all five national academies in the U.S.:

External videos
video icon "This tiny particle could roam your body to find tumors", Sangeeta Bhatia, TED Talks Live, November 2015
video icon "Sangeeta Bhatia, 2014 Lemelson-MIT Prize Winner", January 29, 2015

Bhatia is also a Foreign Fellow of the Australian Academy of Technological Sciences and Engineering.[43] Other notable awards include:

  • Lemelson-MIT Prize (2014) – known as the "Oscar for inventors", for groundbreaking inventions and dedication to the next generation of scientists.[44]
  • Heinz Award for Technology (2015) – for groundbreaking inventions and advocacy for women in STEM fields.[45]
  • Othmer Gold Medal (2019) – from the Science History Institute.[25]
  • Several honorary doctorate degrees, including from the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai (2021), University of London Institute Cancer Research (2019), and Utrecht University in the Netherlands (2017).

Bhatia has also been honored with:

Books

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  • Bhatia, Sangeeta (1999). Microfabrication in tissue engineering and bioartificial organs. Microsystems. Vol. 5. Boston: Kluwer Academic Publishers. doi:10.1007/978-1-4615-5235-2. ISBN 978-1-4613-7386-5.
  • Palsson, Bernhard; Bhatia, Sangeeta (2004). Tissue engineering. Upper Saddle River, N.J.: Pearson Prentice Hall. ISBN 0-13-041696-7. OCLC 52960378.
  • Nahmias, Yaakov; Bhatia, Sangeeta (2009). Microdevices in biology and medicine. Boston: Artech House. ISBN 978-1-59693-405-4. OCLC 542050628.
  • Schultz, Jerome; Mrksich, Milan; Bhatia, Sangeeta N.; Brady, David J.; Ricco, Antionio J.; Walt, David R.; Wilkins, Charles L., eds. (July 15, 2006). Biosensing: International Research and Development. Springer Science & Business Media. ISBN 978-1-4020-4058-0.

Awards

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Bhatia is the recipient of a number of awards and honors including the following:

References

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  1. ^ "Trustees and Fellows | Corporation | Brown University". corporation.brown.edu. Retrieved August 20, 2025.
  2. ^ Bhatia, Sangeeta (May 12, 2016). This tiny particle could roam your body to find tumors. Retrieved August 20, 2025 – via www.ted.com.
  3. ^ a b c d Vickmark, Bryce (September 9, 2014). "Cancer-Fighting Inventor Sangeeta Bhatia Wins $500,000 Prize". Science News. Retrieved March 11, 2019.
  4. ^ a b Scudellari, Megan (May 1, 2013). "The Organist When molecular biology methods failed her, Sangeeta Bhatia turned to engineering and microfabrication to build a liver from scratch". The Scientist. Retrieved March 11, 2019.
  5. ^ "Engineering Artificial Organs". NOVA. June 1, 2009. Retrieved March 11, 2019.
  6. ^ "Engineered liver tissue expands after transplant". MIT News | Massachusetts Institute of Technology. July 19, 2017. Retrieved August 20, 2025.
  7. ^ Akerman, M. E.; Chan, W. C. W.; Laakkonen, P.; Bhatia, S. N.; Ruoslahti, E. (September 16, 2002). "Nanocrystal targeting in vivo". Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. 99 (20): 12617–12621. Bibcode:2002PNAS...9912617A. doi:10.1073/pnas.152463399. PMC 130509. PMID 12235356.
  8. ^ Mann, AP; Scodeller, P; Hussain, S; Joo, J; Kwon, E; Braun, GB; Mölder, T; She, Z; Kotamraju, VR; Ranscht, B; Krajewski, S; Teesalu, T; Bhatia, S; Sailor, MJ; Ruoslahti, E (2016). "A peptide for targeted, systemic delivery of imaging and therapeutic compounds into acute brain injuries". Nat Commun. 7: 11980. Bibcode:2016NatCo...711980M. doi:10.1038/ncomms11980. PMC 4931241. PMID 27351915.
  9. ^ Soleimany, Ava P.; Bhatia, Sangeeta N. (2020). "Activity-Based Diagnostics: An Emerging Paradigm for Disease Detection and Monitoring". Trends in Molecular Medicine. 26 (5): 450–468. doi:10.1016/j.molmed.2020.01.013. ISSN 1471-499X. PMC 8290463. PMID 32359477.
  10. ^ "Nanosensors target enzymes to monitor and study cancer". MIT News | Massachusetts Institute of Technology. November 2, 2022. Retrieved August 20, 2025.
  11. ^ page, Anne Traftonarchive. "A simple urine test for low-cost cancer diagnosis". MIT Technology Review. Retrieved August 20, 2025.
  12. ^ Ktori, Sophia (July 21, 2020). "Exhaled Biomarkers from Nanosensors Detected to Diagnose and Monitor Lung Diseases". GEN - Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology News. Retrieved August 20, 2025.
  13. ^ a b "Inhalable sensors could enable early lung cancer detection". MIT News | Massachusetts Institute of Technology. January 5, 2024. Retrieved August 20, 2025.
  14. ^ "Researchers improve blood tests' ability to detect and monitor cancer". MIT News | Massachusetts Institute of Technology. January 18, 2024. Retrieved August 20, 2025.
  15. ^ "Research". LMRT. Retrieved August 20, 2025.
  16. ^ Hao, Liangliang; Boehnke, Natalie; Elledge, Susanna K.; Harzallah, Nour-Saïda; Zhao, Renee T.; Cai, Eva; Feng, Yu-Xiong; Neaher, Sofia; Fleming, Heather E.; Gupta, Piyush B.; Hammond, Paula T.; Bhatia, Sangeeta N. (March 12, 2024). "Targeting and monitoring ovarian cancer invasion with an RNAi and peptide delivery system". Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. 121 (11): e2307802121. doi:10.1073/pnas.2307802121. PMC 10945808. PMID 38437557.
  17. ^ Graber, Cynthia. "Programmed Bacteria Can Detect Tumors". Scientific American. Retrieved August 20, 2025.
  18. ^ "Diagnosing cancer with help from bacteria". MIT News | Massachusetts Institute of Technology. May 27, 2015. Retrieved August 20, 2025.
  19. ^ "Using bacteria to detect cancer in urine - The Boston Globe". BostonGlobe.com. Retrieved August 20, 2025.
  20. ^ Hao, Liangliang; Zhao, Renee T.; Welch, Nicole L.; Tan, Edward Kah Wei; Zhong, Qian; Harzallah, Nour Saida; Ngambenjawong, Chayanon; Ko, Henry; Fleming, Heather E.; Sabeti, Pardis C.; Bhatia, Sangeeta N. (2023). "CRISPR-Cas-amplified urinary biomarkers for multiplexed and portable cancer diagnostics". Nature Nanotechnology. 18 (7): 798–807. doi:10.1038/s41565-023-01372-9. ISSN 1748-3395. PMC 10359190.
  21. ^ a b Seftel, Josh; Lewis, Susan K. (2009). "The Many Sides of Sangeeta Bhatia". NOVA Science Now. Public Broadcasting Service. Retrieved September 12, 2009.
  22. ^ "Sangeeta N. Bhatia, MD, PhD Investigator / 2009—Present". Howard Hughes Medical Institute. Retrieved September 12, 2009.
  23. ^ a b "People: Sangeeta N. Bhatia". Harvard-MIT Health Science & Technology. Archived from the original on September 19, 2008. Retrieved September 12, 2009.
  24. ^ a b Hagen, Denine (December 1, 1999). "UC San Diego Bioengineering Professor Receives Prestigious Packard Foundation Fellowship". UCSD Jacobs School of Engineering.
  25. ^ a b "Keiko Nomura Named Teacher of the Year". Pulse Newsletter. No. Winter. UCSD Jacobs School of Engineering. 2002. Retrieved September 12, 2009. Other 2001 Teacher of the Year award recipients include: Sangeeta Bhatia Bioengineering
  26. ^ "2003 Innovators Under 35". MIT Technology Review. 2003. Retrieved August 15, 2011.
  27. ^ Palsson, Bernhard Ø.; Bhatia, Sangeeta N. (2004). Tissue engineering. Upper Saddle River, N.J.: Pearson Prentice Hall.
  28. ^ Nahmias, Yaakov; Bhatia, Sangeeta N., eds. (2009). Microdevices in biology and medicine. Boston: Artech House.
  29. ^ Schultz, Jerome; Mrksich, Milan; Bhatia, Sangeeta N.; Brady, David J.; Ricco, Antionio J.; Walt, David R.; Wilkins, Charles L., eds. (July 15, 2006). Biosensing: International Research and Development. Springer Science & Business Media. ISBN 978-1-4020-4058-0.
  30. ^ Nadis, Steve (February 1, 2006). "Sangeeta Bhatia Looks at Life's Architecture". The Scientist. Retrieved September 12, 2009.
  31. ^ a b "The 2008 HHMI Investigators". Howard Hughes Medical Institute. May 27, 2008. Archived from the original on February 27, 2009. Retrieved September 12, 2009.
  32. ^ "Indian chosen for prestigious scientists' body". India Abroad. July 9, 2008.
  33. ^ Kwong, Gabriel A.; Ghosh, Sharmistha; Gamboa, Lena; Patriotis, Christos; Srivastava, Sudhir; Bhatia, Sangeeta N. (2021). "Synthetic biomarkers: a twenty-first century path to early cancer detection". Nature Reviews Cancer. 21 (10): 655–668. doi:10.1038/s41568-021-00389-3. ISSN 1474-1768. PMC 8791024.
  34. ^ "Tiny particles make a big impact". www.uspto.gov. Retrieved August 20, 2025.
  35. ^ "A Renaissance Woman for the Nano Age". MIT Technology Review. Retrieved August 20, 2025.
  36. ^ "Faster tracking of treatment responses". MIT News | Massachusetts Institute of Technology. February 2, 2021. Retrieved August 20, 2025.
  37. ^ Hale, Conor (August 9, 2023). "Sunbird Bio snaps up Glympse Bio for protein-based diagnostics". www.fiercebiotech.com. Retrieved August 20, 2025.
  38. ^ "Sangeeta Bhatia: the biotech entrepreneur advocating for gender equity in STEM fields". The Guardian. January 31, 2017. Retrieved March 12, 2019.
  39. ^ "Bias in biotech funding has blocked companies led by women". The Washington Post. January 29, 2020. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved August 20, 2025.
  40. ^ Wood, Martha Crosier (May 26, 2015). "Scene and Herd: Bhatia wins Heinz Award, focuses on tissue engineering". Lexington Local. Retrieved March 11, 2019.
  41. ^ "Building a Better Way". www.brownalumnimagazine.com. Retrieved August 20, 2025.
  42. ^ "Team". LMRT. Retrieved August 20, 2025.
  43. ^ ATSE. "ATSE Fellows". ATSE. Retrieved August 20, 2025.
  44. ^ a b "Dr. Sangeeta Bhatia - Lemelson-MIT Program". lemelson.mit.edu. Retrieved April 3, 2018.
  45. ^ a b "The Heinz Awards :: Sangeeta Bhatia". www.heinzawards.net. Retrieved April 3, 2018.
  46. ^ "Sangeeta Bhatia FTSE". Australian Academy of Technological Sciences and Engineering. Retrieved October 11, 2023.
  47. ^ "Othmer Gold Medal". Science History Institute. May 31, 2016. Retrieved March 7, 2018.
  48. ^ "Utrecht University to present two honorary doctorates". February 16, 2017. Retrieved April 3, 2018.
  49. ^ "Announcing our 2017 Catalyst Award Winners!". Science Club for Girls community. September 27, 2017. Retrieved March 12, 2019.
  50. ^ "BEAM Award Winners". Brown School of Engineering. Retrieved March 7, 2019.
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