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Craig Simmons is a distinguished professor of mechnobiology at the University of Toronto. He has a Master's degree from Massachusetts Institute of Technology and a Ph.D from the University of Toronto. Simmons actively contributes to the fields of mechanobiology, stem cells, microfluidics and tissue engineering.

Education
Craig Simmons completed his Bachelor of Science in bioengineering at the University of Guelph. He then received his Master of Science degree in mechanical engineering at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. In 2000, Simmons received his Ph.D at the University of Toronto under the supervision of Robert M. Pilliar and Shaker Meguid.

Career
After completing his doctorate degree, Simmons worked as a postdoctoral fellow at David J. Mooney’s lab at the University of Michigan. In 2002, he started his postdoctoral fellowship in the University of Pennsylvania under the supervision of Peter F. Davies. Simmons returned to the University of Toronto in 2005 as an assistant professor. He received his title as a Distinguished Professor of Mechanobiology in 2016.

Stem cell mechanobiology and tissue engineering
One of the Simmons lab's area of research focuses on stem cell mechanobiology and tissue engineering. The lab is developing and optimizing strategies related to the culture and conditioning of pluripotent and mesenchymal stem cells for applications in regenerative medicine. The Simmons lab is working on projects that focus on disease modelling, therapeutic drug testing, and engineering tissue for the replacement of damaged tissues of the cardiovascular system. Current ongoing projects include utilization of novel biomaterials and measurement techniques, development of bioreactors and screening conditions for optimal stem cell culture.

Microfabrication and microfluidics to control cell environment
The Simmons lab aims to mimic the complex environments that cells reside in. These environments have significant impacts on the phenotype and function of cells. The lab addresses this problem by integrating microfabrication with cell mechanics and advanced biology. For example, their experiments have used Pluronic F-127 to produce filaments with higher spatial resolution, greater uniformity, and greater elastic modulus than gelatin filaments. They hope that these filaments will help accelerate the widespread adoption 3D bioprinting to create engineered tissues. This technology combined with the lab’s mechanobioreactors allows for stimulating cells in a controlled manner, again to simulate in vivo conditions.

The Simmons lab’s microfluidic platforms similarly models vascularized cell environments. These platforms offer great potential for incorporating on-chip biomolecular and cell-secreted factor detection while addressing flow constraints imposed by physiological shear stress. The ultimate goal is to enable valuable functionality to microfluidic cell culture models. These labs-on-chips are an efficient means to research vascularized cell environments and aid disease diagnosis.

Heart valve mechanobiology and disease
Sclerosis of the aortic valve is a prevalent and deadly cardiovascular disease, yet the etiology of it is not been fully understood. The Simmons lab works towards gaining a better understanding the mechanical, cellular, and molecular triggers that lead to sclerosis. Using microgenomics approaches, the Simmons lab is identifying novel molecular regulators of valvular calcification. The lab is also using in vitro co-culture systems that allow for mechanical stimulation of valve cells to identify the effects of such stimuli. By better grasping the the mechanical, cellular, and molecular basis of valvular calcification, the Simmons lab aims to identify therapeutic targets for prevention and treatment of sclerosis.

Awards and Accomplishments

 * Elected fellow of the American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering (2018)
 * Northrop Frye Award (2017)
 * Connaught Global Challenge Award (2017)
 * R & D Ontario Professional Engineers Awards (2017)
 * Faculty of Applied Science & Engineering Teaching Awards: Faculty Teaching Award (2017)
 * Distinguished Professor of Mechanobiology, University of Toronto (2016)
 * Scientific Director, U of T Translational Biology & Engineering Program (TBEP), Ted Rogers Centre for Heart Research (2015)
 * Heart and Stroke Foundation CP Has Heart Award (2015)
 * Department of Mechanical & Industrial Engineering Teaching Award (2015)
 * Fellow, Canadian Society for Mechanical Engineering (2014)
 * McLean Award, University of Toronto (2012)
 * McCharles Prize for Early Career Distinction (2010)
 * Director, NSERC CREATE program in Microfluidic Applications and Training in Cardiovascular Health (MATCH) (2009-15)
 * Early Career Teaching Award, Faculty of Applied Science & Engineering (2009)
 * Early Research Award, Department of Mechanical & Industrial Engineering (2009)
 * Ontario Early Researcher Award (2006)
 * Canada Research Chair in Mechanobiology (2006)

Notable Publications and Books

 * Calcific Aortic Valve Disease: Not Simply a Degenerative Process
 * Dual growth factor delivery and controlled scaffold degradation enhance in vivo bone formation by transplanted bone marrow stromal cells
 * Cyclic strain enhances matrix mineralization by adult human mesenchymal stem cells via the extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK1/2) signaling pathway
 * Introductory biomechanics: from cells to organisms
 * Calcification by valve interstitial cells is regulated by the stiffness of the extracellular matrix