Meet the Team

Postdoc/Research Scientist

Dr. Aibhlin Esparza completed her Ph.D. at the University of Texas at El Paso and specializes in tissue engineering, hiPSCs, microfluidics, and lab-on-a-chip technologies. Her work centers on designing 3D cardiovascular and cancer tissue platforms for preclinical drug screening and disease modeling. By combining advanced bioengineering techniques with microfluidic systems, Dr. Esparza enhances the physiological relevance of in vitro models, aiming to improve the accuracy and safety of drug development, with a particular focus on cardiovascular applications.

Esparza Aibhlin . PhD

Postdoc

Graduate Members

Gobinath, an M.Tech graduate in Bioprocess Engineering from IIT Madras, he is a Ph.D. student in the joint Bioengineering program at OSU-UO. His research focuses on cellular agriculture and biomaterials design, advancing sustainable solutions in tissue engineering and food production. Outside the lab, he enjoys playing soccer and badminton.

Gobinath

PhD Student

Ivana obtained her BS in Metallurgical and Materials Engineering and her MS in Biomedical Engineering from The University of Texas at El Paso. She has received numerous honors, including the NSF GRFP. Her professional background features internships at SNL as a MSIIP-NNSA intern and at the AFRL as a SFFP awardee. Currently a Research Assistant at IMSTEL, she has made significant contributions to cardiovascular tissue engineering projects, including a collaboration with the ISSNL at NASA KSC, where she facilitated the sending of biomaterials to space. Her research focuses on enhancing 3D bioprinting and 3D characterization techniques to develop innovative therapies for myocardial regeneration

Ivana Hernandez

PhD Student

Marion is pursuing a master’s degree in bioengineering at Oregon State University. She completed her undergraduate degree in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology at Lewis & Clark College. Her research centers on biofabrication techniques, including metabolic analysis, cryopreservation, impedance probe measurements, and extended imaging of cardiac tissue constructs.

Marion

MS Student

Andie graduated from The University of Texas at El Paso in 2021 with a bachelor’s degree in Metallurgical and Materials Science Engineering. She returned to UTEP as a recipient of UTEP’s Doctoral Excellence Fellowship to pursue her PhD. in Biomedical Engineering. She is currently serving as a Graduate Research Assistant under Dr. Joddar. Her research currently focuses on 3D cardiac tissue models to study cardiac muscular atrophies as well as 3D neuronal tissue models for extracellular recordings in vitro.

Andie Padilla

PhD Student (BME-UTEP)

Polette Esmeralda Cortez, a native of El Paso, earned a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering and a Master of Science in Metallurgical and Materials Engineering from the University of Texas at El Paso (UTEP). After completing her master’s degree, she began her career as a Materials and Corrosion Engineer at a petroleum plant in El Paso, TX, before moving to Houston to work as a Corrosion Specialist and Asset Integrity Analyst. Polette transitioned to education and is now a Graduate Research Assistant in Inspired Materials & STEM-Cell Based Tissue Engineering Laboratory. She is pursuing a Ph.D. in Biomedical Engineering, focusing on cardiac tissue biofabrication.

Polette Esmeralda Cortez

PhD Student (MASE-UTEP)

Haritha Keerthi is a part-time PhD student and full-time employee at the University of Texas at El Paso, with a Master’s degree in Interdisciplinary Sciences. Her research focuses on investigating the structural and functional characteristics of the human ventricular myocardium in diabetic and non-diabetic individuals. Currently, she is conducting a pilot study aimed at elucidating the impact of type II diabetes on the architecture and functionality of human heart tissue.

Haritha Keerthi

PhD Student (ESE-UTEP)

Salma Ramirez is a Master’s student in Biomedical Engineering at the University of Texas at El Paso (UTEP). Her research centers on 3D bioprinting for cardiac tissue applications, developing electrospun scaffolds for neuronal differentiation, and utilizing gold nanoparticles to analyze the microstructure of 3D bioprinted scaffolds. She holds a Bachelor’s degree in Metallurgical and Materials Engineering from UTEP and is an active member of IMSTEL at UTEP.

Salma Ramirez

MS Student (BME-UTEP)

Undergraduate Members

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Chester Lao

Undergraduate

Chester (CJ) is a fourth-year chemical engineering student working to complete his honors thesis. He is working to optimize gold nanoparticles usage in the construction of 3D-Bioprinted hydrogel matrices. In his spare time, he enjoys running and spending time with friends.

Leeah Chen

Undergraduate

Chen is an Honors College student majoring in Biomedical Engineering with aspirations to pursue a career in medicine. Her research interests lie at the intersection of cardiogenesis, tissue regeneration, and neurology, where she is passionate about advancing innovative solutions to improve human health.

Manasvi

Undergraduate

Manasvi is an undergraduate student pursuing a degree in Bioengineering with a minor in Computer Science at Oregon State University. She is passionate about leveraging biomaterials for regenerative medicine, with a special emphasis on advancements in bone tissue engineering. Outside of academics, Manasvi enjoys exploring her creativity through ceramics and spending quality time hiking with her family.