Smooth muscle cells producing smooth muscle α-actin

Zoe Reidinger received her bachelors degree in Biomedical Engineering from Virginia Commonwealth University in 2008. For her doctorate, her research focused on modulating the phenotype of smooth muscle cells in cell derived tissue for use in vascular tissue engineering applications. This work, done in Marsha Rolle’s Lab, focused on using changes in surface stiffness and cyclic stretch to promote a switch to a contractile phenotype, indicative of healthy smooth muscle cells.