Hasan Erbil Abaci, PhD

Our research essentially focuses on recapitulating and understanding the chemical and biomechanical microenvironment in skin morphogenesis and regeneration using advanced 3D human skin models. We are particularly interested in the development and maintenance of skin-specific vasculature and its regulation by the skin microenvironment. Our approach is based on reconstructing the integumentary system in vitro at different levels of complexity through microfluidic-based iPSC-derived organoids, and ii) 3D-printed multicomponent skin models to primarily study the skin microvasculature and its unique functions during the skin development, homeostasis and inflammation. The skin is a complex organ containing more than 50 different cell types and various components and appendages. Therefore, the ability to generate physiologically-relevant human skin tissues allows us to dissect individual roles of various microenvironmental factors, including cell-cell and cell-ECM interactions in both normal and disease states of the human skin.