Sponsored by the BioInterfaces SIG and Burroughs Wellcome Fund (BWF), the BWF BioInterfaces Rising Star Award recognizes outstanding research by postdoc-level scientists who excel at bringing together biomaterials and protein/cell biology.

Highlighting the strength and impact of the growing BioInterfaces research community, the overall quality of the 2022 applicant pool was outstanding. We are excited about the future contributions of these postdoc-level scientists who excel at BioInterfaces research. They are uniquely positioned to bring a biomaterials lens to cutting-edge research in protein and cell biology, and, conversely, to translate progress in molecular and cell biology into innovative biomaterials.

Exemplifying this BioInterfaces mindset, we congratulate Dr. Xiao Huang as the 2022 BWF BioInterfaces Rising Star.

Dr. Huang, a postdoctoral fellow in the Department of Bioengineering and Therapeutic Sciences at UCSF, is advancing biomaterial-based approaches to modulate and dissect cellular mechanisms at the crux of effective cancer immunotherapies. Notably, published by Nature Nanotechnology in 2021, Dr. Huang pioneered a robust and versatile DNA-based strategy to functionalize biomaterials for precise immune modulation. In a rapid-fire 1-min video, Dr. Huang shares an overview of this and other research contributions, as well as his vision for progress at the interface materials engineering and immunomodulation.

We thank the group of BWF and SFB reviewers who served on the 2022 selection committee: Kelly Rose (BWF), Louis J. Muglia (BWF), Ashley Brown (SFB), Ngan F. Huang (SFB), David Kohn (SFB), and Nathan Gallant (SFB).